Men’s Emergency Shelter-Virtual Health Assessments
At a Glance
The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges across communities, and transmission among underserved communities, such as people experiencing homelessness added complexity to the response. The goal of this project was to reduce the spread of COVID-19 at Porchlight Men’s Emergency Shelter by using an innovative technology-enabled solution of virtual volunteer nurses from Nurse Disrupted, LLC to screen all guests safely and accurately each day prior to admission to the homeless shelter sites. This project was successfully completed as the technology was developed and implemented. The technology solution had a 100 percent adoption rate, and surveys of guests and staff demonstrated high satisfaction with the telehealth service.
The Challenge
The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges in the healthcare system and across communities. Transmission among underserved populations that face multiple health disparities, such as people experiencing homelessness, added complexity to the COVID-19 response. Porchlight staff recognized that pre-screenings were necessary to ensure the health and safety of the population they serve. The Porchlight team began separating guests with symptoms and advising them to be checked by a health professional. This was not enough to keep the population safe from the virus. Porchlight used a COVID-19 Response grant from the Wisconsin Partnership Program to partner with Nurse Disrupted, LLC, and its founders Bre Loughlin, MS, RN, and Tracy Zvenyach, PhD, APRN-NP. Nurse Disrupted provided an innovative technology-enabled solution of virtual nursing volunteers to screen homeless shelter guests safely and accurately each day before entering the shelter.
Project Goals
The goal of this community-led project was to immediately reduce the spread of COVID-19 by using an innovative technology-enabled solution of virtual volunteers to screen all guests safely and accurately prior to admission to the homeless shelter sites. This goal was approached through three specific objectives. The first objective was to deploy a technology-based protocol method for COVID-19 screening among homeless shelter populations. Second, the team aimed to reduce COVID-19 transmission by safely and accurately identifying shelter guests and referring to appropriate protocol locations. The third objective was to explore the use of virtual volunteer methods to build capacity for other shelter services.
Results
Porchlight and Nurse Disrupted were successful in implementing the virtual, volunteer-led screening tool. The technology was developed, implemented, and updated as needed in concordance with updates and recommendations from Madison and Dane County Public Health. The technology solution had a 100 percent adoption rate in the shelter and with the nurses. Volunteer nurses and nursing students met virtually to screen men experiencing COVID-19 symptoms in a heated trailer outside of the shelter. A total of 2,619 detailed COVID-19 screenings were conducted and appropriate referrals were made to hotels and the emergency department based on the severity of symptoms.
A survey was conducted among shelter guests. The results demonstrated high satisfaction with the COVID-19 response including higher access to care, feelings of support and compassion, valued education of COVID-19 safety precautions, and respect for privacy. A survey of shelter staff also found unanimous support for telehealth to improve access to care.
Lasting Impact
Nurse Disrupted was able to leverage the initial success of their Partnership with Porchlight to successfully compete for additional funding to expand their operations to additional shelters in Dane County and Milwaukee. Founder Bre Loughlin was featured on the Today Show.