Councilmember Reynoso Visits CFH Health Center
Brooklyn Councilmember Antonio Reynoso joined CFH Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Regina Olasin, in touring our health center located at Peter Jay Sharp in April during our HIV Awareness Carnival. Councilmember Reynoso and Dr. Regina Olasin spoke about the health challenges that people experiencing homelessness face and what CFH does to address those challenges. Those efforts include a highly successful citywide Peer Outreach program that trains and employs currently or formerly homeless peers to locate unstably housed individuals not currently accessing health care services and provide them with the information and aid necessary to increase proper utilization. Councilmember Reynoso also took the opportunity to speak to CFH Staff, including our very own Peer Outreach Specialist, Crystal Santana, who spoke of the positive impact that the outreach program has in communities where people face incredible challenges accessing quality lifesaving services.
At CFH we provide primary medical and mental health care as well as specialty services such as podiatry, dentistry, health education, substance abuse evaluation and treatment and case management. Our patients most often have dual chronic medical issues and require a coordinated approach to health care delivery. Our peer outreach workers are adept at finding and connecting with our target population. They can communicate and build trust that others are unable to duplicate. Our outreach model is for multiple contacts with each new potential patient, including following up to get them to appointments, helping them with preventative and ongoing health care, and accessing appropriate social services, activities and trainings.
Bringing vulnerable people into health care is not just the right thing to do, it directly addresses the three major healthcare concerns in our society:
- it provides access to people not accessing primary and preventative health care
- it improves health care outcomes
- and it saves public resources by decreasing emergency room utilization
Not to mention the opportunity to unlock human potential and improve neighborhoods and quality of life.
For many people experiencing homelessness, appropriately accessing health care is the first step in transitioning out of homelessness. We want to thank Councilmember Reynoso and his staff for understanding the immediate need for appropriate health care utilization and the value that programs like the CFH Peer-to-Peer Outreach model brings to underserved communities in NYC. The CFH Policy and Advocacy team will continue to meet with Councilmember Reynoso and his colleagues at City Council to help develop and support city programs and policies to effectively fight, prevent and end homelessness. We look forward to continuing that work.