Healing Hands

Healing Hands, a publication of the HCH Clinicians’ Network, melds scientific knowledge with the experience of clinicians working in Health Care for the Homeless and reflects issues of concern to direct service providers and program administrators who serve people experiencing homelessness. This page lists all of the issues by topics—medical treatment, behavioral health care, special populations, service delivery/program evaluation, peer support and advocacy.

Latest Issues: February 2021

COVID-19 Series, Issue 1, Trauma, Mental Health, and Access to Services for People Experiencing Homelessness During the COVID-19 Pandemic
COVID-19 Series, Issue 2, Staff Wellness During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Advocacy
Topic	Issue
Barriers to Care	Working to Eliminate Barriers to Care for Homeless People (Jun 2010)
Housing	Housing Solutions for People Experiencing Homelessness (May 2018) Relationship between Housing and Health Care (Aug 2009)
Incarceration & Homelessness	Keeping Homeless People Out of the Justice System: The HCH Role (Dec 2004)
Integrating Service & Advocacy	Clinicians as Advocates ( Apr 2000)
Managed Care	Lessons for Clinicians from Traditional Healers (Jun 1999)
Preventing & Ending Homelessness	Supportive Housing Helps Break the Cycle of Homelessness (Dec 2003) Preventing Chronic Homelessness Among Youth (Nov 2005)

Behavioral Health Care
Topic	Issue
Behavioral Change	Partnering with People for Life-Saving Change (Summer 2014) Eliciting Behavioral Change: Tools for HCH Clinicians (Jun 2000) Butt Out: Homelessness & Smoking Cessation (Aug 2010)
Co-occurring Disorders	Bridging the Gap: What We Know and Don’t Know about Dual Diagnosis (Jul 1998) Meeting the Challenge of Comorbid Mental Illness & Substance Related Disorders (Feb 2009) Caring for Clients with Comorbid Psychiatric & Medical Illnesses (Dec 2009)
Complementary & Alternative Therapies	Lessons for Clinicians from Traditional Healers (Jun 1999) Use of Complementary & Alternative Therapies in Homeless Health Care (Jun 2008) The Presence of Spirituality in Healing (Aug 2008)
Mental Health	Non-Opioid Substance Use, Mental Health, & Homelessness (April 2019) Speaking from Experience: The Power of Peer Specialists (Fall 2013) Spirituality as a Clinical Tool: Care for the Homeless Mentally Ill (Dec 1998) Mental Illness, Chronic Homelessness: An American Disgrace (Oct 2000) Patients with Borderline Personality Disorders Challenge HCH Clinicians (Sept 2003) Which Is It: ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, or PTSD? (Aug 2006) Protecting the Mental Health of Homeless Children & Youth (Feb 2000) Caring for Clients with Comorbid Psychiatric & Medical Illnesses (Dec 2009)
Substance Use Disorders	Harm Reduction (May 2020) Treatment Models for Non-Opioid Substance Use Amongst Populations Experiencing Homelessness (June 2019) Non-Opioid Substance Use, Mental Health, & Homelessness (April 2019) Substance Use Among Youth Experiencing Homelessness (September 2016) A Comprehensive Approach to Substance Abuse and Homelessness (Oct 2003) Addiction on the Streets: Clinical Interventions (Oct 2006) Butt Out: Homelessness & Smoking Cessation (Aug 2010)
Trauma	Homelessness and Family Trauma: The Case for Early Intervention (May 2003) Trauma & Homelessness (Apr 1999) Traumatic Brain Injury: Emerging Tools for Assessment and Care (Feb 2008) Trauma Informed Care (Dec 2010)

Medical Treatment
Topic	Issue
Cardiovascular Disease	Heart of the Matter: Hypertension & Homelessness (Apr 2001) Heart of the Matter: Managing and Preventing Cardiovascular Disease (Aug 2005) Butt Out: Homelessness & Smoking Cessation (Aug 2010)
Diabetes	Diabetes: Health Care’s Burgeoning Beast (Aug 2007)
Disability	Dealing with Disability: Physical Impairments & Homelessness (Oct 2002) Dealing with Disability: Cognitive Impairments & Homelessness (Mar 2003)
End-of-Life Care	HCH Clinicians Can Help Homeless People Die with Dignity (Feb 2004)
Exposure Related Conditions	Exposure-Related Conditions: Symptoms & Prevention Strategies (Dec 2007)
Harm Reduction	Harm Reduction (May 2020)
Infectious Diseases	Tuberculosis: A Persistent Threat to Public Health (Winter 2014) Hepatitis C Update (Spring 2013) Tuberculosis & Homelessness: Metaphor for Our Time (Jan 1999) Homeless People at Higher Risk for CA-MRSA, HIV and TB (Dec 2006) Chronic Hepatitis C: Silent Intruder, Insidious Threat (Mar 1999) STDs: A Hidden Epidemic (Mar 2011)
Kidney Disease	Kidney Disease: Prevention & Early Detection of a Silent Killer (April 2010)
Liver Disease	The Specter of Liver Disease (Dec 2008)
Nutrition	No Place at the Table: Hunger & Homelessness (Nov 2011)
Oral Health Care	Dental and Vision Care for Homeless Patients (Fall 2015) Filling the Gaps in Dental Care (Jun 2003) Pediatric Oral Health: What Every HCH Provider Should Know (Oct. 2007)
Palliative Care	Patient-Centered Care: Case Studies on End of Life (Jan. 2018) Pain Management: Reducing Disparities for Homeless Patients (Oct 2004)
Parasites & Infestations	Bugs That Bite: Helping Homeless People and Shelter Staff Cope (Feb 2005)
Prescription Drugs	Rx for Homeless Patients Present Financial, Medical Challenges (Apr 2004) Operation Safety Net: Outreach to Unsheltered Homeless People (Nov 1998)
Preventive Care	Preventive Care
Respiratory Diseases	Short of Breath: A Winter’s Tale of Asthma, COPD & Homelessness (Dec 2000) Butt Out: Homelessness & Smoking Cessation (Aug 2010)
Sleep Deprivation	Sufficient Sleep: A Necessity, Not a Luxury (Spring 2014)
Wound Care	Best Practices and Considerations for Wound Care (January 2017) Wound Care Difficult for Homeless Patients and Providers (Jun 2004)

Peer Support
Topic	Issue
Avoiding Burnout	Compassion Fatigue: The High Cost of Caring (Winter 2012) Coping with Stress, Creating & Maintaining Hope (Dec 1999) Renewal & Resiliency in Our Work (Feb 2002)
HCH Clinicians’ Network	The HCH Clinicians’ Network: Eight Years and Counting (Dec 2002)
Leadership	Enhancing Leadership & Management Skills for Successful HCH Projects (May 2011)
Staffing	Speaking from Experience: The Power of Peer Specialists (Fall 2013) Nurses: On the Front Lines of Health Care for Homeless People (Apr 2005) The Challenges of Supervision in HCH: Helping Staff Succeed (Feb 2006) HCH Staff Recruitment & Retention: Unique Problems, Innovative Solutions (Jun 2007)

Service Delivery/Program Evaluation
Topic	Issue
Barriers to Care	Case Management for Homeless Clients Who Are Not Obviously Disabled (Feb 2007) Working to Eliminate Barriers to Care for Homeless People (Jun 2010)
Care Coordination	Coordinated Entry Systems, Assessment of Vulnerability, and Housing Prioritization for People Experiencing Homelessness (Feb 2020) Care Coordination (July 2016)
Chronic Disease Management	Health Disparities Collaboratives: Closing the Gap between Knowledge & Practice (Sept 2002) Butt Out: Homelessness & Smoking Cessation (Aug 2010)
Clinical Leadership	Clinical Leadership in the Health Care for the Homeless Setting (Winter 2013)
Discharge Planning	Tools to Help Clinicians Achieve Effective Discharge Planning (Oct 2008)
Emergency Preparedness	Disaster Planning Requires Time, Resources, Collaboration (Aug 2004)
Information Systems	Electronic Information Systems In Homeless Health Care (Apr 2002)
Integrated Services	Pursuing National Quality Recognition (Spring 2012) Integrated, Interdisciplinary Models of Care (Aug 1999) Integrating Primary & Behavioral Health Care for Homeless People (May 2006)
Medical Respite Care	Lessons for Clinicians from Traditional Healers (Jun 1999) Medical Respite Care: An Integral Part of the Homeless Care Continuum (Apr 2007)
Outcomes Measurement	Lessons for Clinicians from Traditional Healers (Jun 1999) Are We Making a Difference? (Feb 2001)
Outreach	Operation Safety Net: Outreach to Unsheltered Homeless People (Nov 1998)
Research	Research in HCH Settings: Advancing Quality in Primary Care (Jun 09)
Workplace Violence	Workplace Violence: What You Need to Know (Feb 2010)

Special Populations
Topic	Issue
Children & Youth	Substance Use Among Youth Experiencing Homelessness (September 2016) Protecting the Mental Health of Homeless Children & Youth (Feb 2000) Homelessness Challenges Infants’ Social-Emotional Development (Jun 2005) Preventing Chronic Homelessness Among Youth (Nov 2005) Pediatric Oral Health: What Every HCH Provider Should Know (Oct. 2007) Engaging Adolescents Who Are Homeless in Care (Oct 2009) Breaking the Cycle of Family Homelessness Through Intensive Case Management (Oct 1998) Mitigating Homeless Children’s Risk for Developmental Delay (Apr 2009)
Elderly	Aging on the Streets (Apr 2008)
Families	Addressing Family Homelessness (Summer 2012) When the Bough Breaks: Families Experiencing Homelessness (Oct 2010)
Hispanic/Latinos	Paso a Paso: Step-by-Step Toward Cultural Competence (Jan 2002)
Rural populations	Hard to Reach: Rural Homelessness & Health Care (Oct 2001)
Sexual Minorities	‘Seeing People as They See Themselves’: Health Care and Access for Transgender Individuals Experiencing Homelessness (Feb 2015) Crossing to Safety: Transgender Health & Homelessness (Jun 2002)
Single Males	Single Males: The Homeless Majority (Jun 2001)
Veterans	A Troubled Homecoming: Understanding and Treating Veterans Experiencing Homelessness (Fall 2014)
Women	Decreasing Unintended Pregnancy Among Women Experiencing Homelessness (Fall 2012) Pregnant and Homeless (Aug 2001) Women’s Health Care: Show Me the Way to Go Home (Aug 2000)

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This website is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $1,967,147 with 20 percent financed with non-governmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov.

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