A Newham Integrated Homelessness Project aims to use the opportunity of hospital contact to find safe accommodation for homeless people. The new integrated discharge team will work across Newham University Hospital wards and A&E services. They will provide expert input, liaison, and facilitate and support the discharge of homeless people who present to acute services or who are admitted into hospital.

The team will work closely with the Integrated Discharge Hub, housing teams, adult social care teams, primary care teams and the voluntary sector. The service aims to discharge the person to safe accommodation to avoid them being discharged back to the streets. Raguraman Padmanabhan (Ram),Service Lead for the Project said, “We hope by intervening at this point and providing alternative accommodation options, we can prevent further illness and health deterioration in this highly vulnerable group. This will lead to a reduction in unscheduled re-admissions and A&E attendances, and hopefully be a turning point and break the cycle.”