Influenza Resources

Communicable Diseases

Resources

THE HEALTH CARE FOR HOMELESS PERSONS:
A MANUAL OF COMMUNICABLE DISEASES & COMMON PROBLEMS
IN SHELTERS & ON THE STREETS

This lavishly illustrated, 384-page manual describes serious health problems that commonly afflict homeless persons and discusses appropriate responses and treatment. The manual addresses communicable disease control and food handling in shelter settings, and current approaches to the management of chronic diseases. It includes convenient patient education materials in English and Spanish that can be easily reproduced and given to shelter guests and staff. The manual is no longer available in print, but you may
download it from the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program website.
PRACTICE ADAPTATIONS

Adapting Your Practice: Treatment and Recommendations for Homeless Patients with HIV/AIDS (PDF) - recommended clinical practice adaptations for the care of individuals with human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome who are homeless; developed by clinicians working in HCH projects (2003)
Adapting Your Practice: Treatment and Recommendations for Homeless Patients with Chlamydial or Gonococcal Infections (PDF) - recommended clinical practice adaptations for the care of individuals with these sexually transmitted diseases who are homeless; developed by clinicians working in HCH projects (2003)
HIV/AIDS & Homelessness: Recommendations for Clinical Practice & Public Policy by John Y. Song, MD (1999) - also available in PDF
Combating Tuberculosis & Homelessness: Recommendations for Policy & Practice, our 1994 publication, is still relevant to the struggle against this significant health threat for homeless persons.

CASE REPORT Comorbid TB and HIV in a Chronically Homeless Male: Social Isolation Compounds Stress of Medical Confinement (2006)

HEALING HANDS ARTICLES

Healing Hands |December 2006| Homeless People at Higher Risk for CA-MRSA, HIV and TB
Healing Hands |March 1999| Chronic Hepatitis C: Silent Intruder, Insidious Threat
Healing Hands | January 1999 | Tuberculosis & Homelessness: Metaphor for Our Time
Healing Hands | September 1998 | Network to Study HIV and Homelessness

SHELTERS & TB: WHAT STAFF NEED TO KNOW Shelters and TB: What Staff Need to Know is an 18-minute video on preventing the spread of tuberculosis in homeless shelters. It describes what TB is, how it is spread, what to do when staff suspects someone has TB, how to develop and implement a TB infection control policy, and how to work together with the local health department to create a healthy and safe environment for staff and clients. A viewer’s guide contains main points from the video, tools, checklists and resources that can be put to immediate use. The video and viewer’s guide are available from the Francis J. Curry National Tuberculosis Center at www.nationaltbcenter.edu or by telephone (415) 502-4600.

ASK THE EXPERT
"Ask the Expert" is a service of the HCH Clinicians' Network intended to be a resource for clinicians who work with people experiencing homelessness. In this column, our expert Ann Petru, MD, Associate Director of Infectious Disease Medicine at Children's Hospital and Research Center in Oakland, California, answers a question about pediatric HIV/AIDS.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Health in Shelters | PowerPoint presentation by Bob Donovan, MD, given at the 2006 National Health Care for the Homeless Conference | Focuses on communicable diseases seen frequently in homeless shelters
Informed Consent and Agreement to HIV Testing
Managing Infectious Diseases in Child Care & Schools: A Quick Reference Guide | Edited by Susan S. Aronson, MD, FAAP, and Timothy R. Shope, MD, MPH, FAAP | This best-selling guide helps out-of-home caregivers prevent, identify and respond to the most common childhood infectious diseases | American Academy of Pediatrics | 2004