| Description |
Homeless individuals often have high utilization of emergency healthcare services. With United States healthcare costs continuing to rise encouraging appropriate utilization as a way to lower costs and improve outcomes is becoming a priority. This study examined the healthcare encounters of formerly chronically homeless individuals living in a housing first model in Salt Lake City, Utah. Data were gathered over a 6-week period by case managers who work onsite at the housing facility. The case managers recorded healthcare encounters of their residents in a log that included: resident apartment number, insurance status, date of the encounter, location of the encounter, and notes which included type of encounter and reason for it. A total of 113 healthcare encounters were recorded for 32 residents. Approximately 40% of the residents at the housing first facility were represented in the data. Fifty-nine percent of the sample population were covered by Medicaid only, 22% had both Medicare and Medicaid coverage, and 19% had no insurance. The healthcare encounters occurred an average of three miles from the housing first facility. The three healthcare systems most represented in the data include Valley Behavioral Health, Intermountain Healthcare, and the Emergency Medical System (EMS) system. EMS and Emergency Department (ED) encounters accounted for only 12% of all the recorded encounters. The findings suggest that, in a supportive housing environment, formerly chronically homeless individuals can have success navigating the healthcare system. Additionally, this population has high utilization of mental health services; this may indicate an area that needs more funding, further research or both. |
