Intravenous (IV) Antibiotics and Outpatient Parenteral Antibiotic Therapy (OPAT) are effective methods for treating infections, including those more commonly seen among people experiencing homelessness, such as endocarditis or osteomyelitis. Although these treatments have a high efficacy, they are often challenging for unhoused populations to be able to complete.
These challenges are in part due to the need to manage access to IV lines for long periods of time, the methods required to store and administer medications, and the self-management required to keep the administration area clean which are highly challenging when someone does not have consistent access to safe, stable housing.
These barriers present challenges both for hospitals, who often initiate IV antibiotics and may have to keep a patient long-term to complete their course, homeless services programs who do not have capacity to provide this level of medical monitoring, and the clients themselves who would benefit but can not access these medications.
Medical respite care programs have an opportunity to close this gap in care by offering a safe place to support individuals receiving IV antibiotics, or to partner with community providers (such as skilled nursing facilities) to provide a secure discharge placement and follow-up care. Due to the complexity of managing this type of care, medical respite care programs should thoughtfully consider their capacity to support clients receiving this treatment to address this gap.
This webinar will present an overview of promising practices from the field on ways to safely support people receiving IV antibiotics, including programmatic and clinical considerations. Attendees will be able to use information presented to determine if and how they would be able to provide support for this population from a harm reductive and client-centered perspective.
Date: Wednesday, April 22, 2026
Time: 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Central / 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Eastern
