Welcome

The Coronavirus continues to threaten our public health and poses a great risk to those experiencing homelessness. This is why area agencies and health care providers have banded together to prevent an outbreak of COVID-19 from occurring within our local homeless populations in Tulare County.  
 
The Tulare County Health & Human Services Agency, Tulare/Kings Homeless Alliance, and Kaweah Delta’s Street Medicine Program have collaborated to organize and provide various outreach events at homeless encampments throughout the county. Working together, area agencies can provide onsite health screenings and COVID-19 testing, as well as supply face coverings, hygiene kits, and essential food and water.    
 
“We are doing free COVID-19 screening tests for the homeless population to decrease that barrier to access of care,” says Dr. Omar Guzman, who directs Kaweah Delta’s Street Medicine Program.  “Our street medicine team allows us to proactively seek patients in the community who might need to see a doctor, but just haven’t had access. If we find out someone is positive for the coronavirus in a place where it is really hard to self-isolate, hard to wash their hands, and they don’t have access to masks, we can get them help.” 
 
Kaweah Delta’s Street Medicine Program provides the direct delivery of health care within a homeless encampment, including collection of COVID-19 specimens that are then sent to the Kaweah Delta laboratory for processing. This committed group of physicians, nurses, and community volunteers travel the roads of Tulare County offering the most vulnerable populations – undocumented workers, uninsured, homeless, etc., preventive health screenings, wound care, health education, and referrals to social services and community health centers.  
 
In addition to onsite COVID testing and health screenings, organizers provide information and referrals to Project Roomkey in Tulare County, resources available to get free health care, federal stimulus programs, and channels to permanent housing, as well as information for local drug and substance abuse prevention programs. Project Roomkey is a collaborative utilizing state funding to secure hotel and motel rooms for vulnerable people experiencing homelessness. The program provides a way for people who do not have a home to stay isolated to prevent any potential spread of COVID-19. Currently, the County is able to house 19% of the homeless population, if needed, through Project Roomkey.   
 
“It is imperative that we provide essential health care to the homeless and proactively prevent any potential outbreaks. The majority of our homeless population is extremely vulnerable to severe illness from COVID-19, as most also have other, underlying medical conditions,” shared Tulare County Supervisor Amy Shuklian, who chairs the Tulare County Task Force on Homelessness.     
 
This ongoing collaboration will continue providing outreach events to homeless populations throughout Tulare County in an effort to prevent and mitigate any potential COVID-19 outbreaks at homeless encampments within local cities and locations throughout the county. Anyone who is interested in volunteering with Kaweah Delta’s Street Medicine Program can sign up at www.kaweahdelta.org/street. 
 

   

Above left: Kaweah Delta Hospital Street Medicine Team provides COVID-19 test collection in Tulare.
 
Above right: Kaweah Delta Hospital Street Medicine Team provides health screening to homeless man in Tulare.