Munson gives $300K boost to expand Street Medicine in TC

Elizabeth Brewer, The Record-Eagle, Traverse City, Mich.
·4 min read

Apr. 26—TRAVERSE CITY — A program that helps the homeless receive free medical care will get an additional $300,000 over the next two years from Munson Healthcare system.

The donation to Traverse Health Clinic was announced Thursday, five days before Traverse City's emergency overnight shelter closes for the season on April 30.

The gift will support the expansion of Street Medicine, a mobile healthcare team that provides free medical and mental health care to the unhoused population in Traverse City. It was established through a partnership with Munson Medical Center, Goodwill Northern Michigan and the Traverse Health Clinic.

According to a Munson Healthcare statement, the money will help expand access for homeless patients and add upgrades to the Traverse Health Clinic's mobile medical unit, which serves as the home base for Street Medicine providers.

The funding will help Street Medicine hire a full-time community coordinator position "dedicated to supporting comprehensive wraparound services and managing operational costs for the program," the release said.

The coordinator will connect inpatient and outpatient services for patients moving between the hospital and Street Medicine.

"Right now, there's difficulty being able to do normal transitions of care, so our patients would typically get a phone call or a letter about follow-up care and making sure everything is coordinated," said Dr. David Klee, who oversees the program. "But, when you don't have a regular address or an operational phone, it's very difficult to make those connections, so this person will be working to facilitate those transitions of care."

"Getting this position started and established now will really help us be able to provide better care," he said.

Klee said the funds also will pay for upgrades, such as adding grab bars to help patients climb the steep steps that go up into the clinic and modifying the existing water heater.

Along with Klee, four other faculty providers oversee eight family medicine residents and two psychiatry residents. Together, they care for the health of the homeless in Traverse City, free of charge.

With the closure of Safe Harbor, Klee said the clinic sees a large number of unhoused patients and an increase in the number of people who utilize emergency services.

Some of the care that's provided includes access to immunizations, chronic disease management, mental health care, substance use care, distributing hygiene products and prenatal care.

Every Friday in the summer months, the mobile medical unit visits a homeless encampment called the Pines on South Division Street as part of the local initiative.

On Tuesdays, the unit parks next to Jubilee House, the day shelter that's open five days a week, and the Goodwill Inn in Garfield Township.

"Those in our Northern Michigan communities experiencing homelessness are among the most vulnerable to significant illness or chronic health issues," said Ed Ness, president and CEO of Munson Healthcare. "As we see these numbers continue to grow in our community and in our emergency rooms, Munson Healthcare is committed to ensuring that everyone has access to the care they need including preventative care."

The hope is for patients to focus on improving their overall long-term health, cutting down on the need for emergency services, like ambulances. Since the program's inception, Klee said the number of ambulance calls from the unhoused population in Traverse City has gone down, a promising statistic that bodes well for the program's future.

Since the team was founded during the pandemic, they've provided medical care to more than 1,000 people, according to data from Munson.

In a news release, Traverse Health Clinic CEO Casey Kandow called the two-year funding a way to build the momentum and reach of the program, and a commitment between partners "to alleviate human suffering and help provide our unhoused population these critical healthcare services."

Goodwill Northern Michigan's Community Engagement Officer Ryan Hannon said the funding will have a positive impact on their overall work to end homelessness.

"Homelessness is a serious attack on your health," Hannon said in a prepared statement. "Our goal is to help people move on from these circumstances into a safe place to call home, to heal, and to have long-term housing success."