Are you experiencing new challenges, expenses, staff overtime, etc?
A:
Doug's House -
Yes, we have lost a substantial stream of revenue with having to close our Top Drawer Thrift stores. We are still having to cover the overhead of rent, utilities, and wages for all employees. Doug's House heavily depends on Top Drawer revenue to fund everyday operations and expenses and COVID-19 is causing new, unexpected costs.
Doug's House provides round-the-clock care to some of the most vulnerable in our community that are not only struggling with HIV, but have comorbidities like cancer, diabetes, and other health conditions that make them particularly vulnerable to the deadly threat of COVID-19. We are experiencing new challenges to quickly develop and implement new procedures to keep both the residents and staff safe from contracting COVID-19. We are in immediate need of a weekend lead nurse or caregiver to effectively implement all these new policies for our weekend staff.
The staff at Doug's House have struggled to obtain all the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that they need to ensure everyone stays safe in the house. We are still accepting new admissions because we know that the people living at the intersection of HIV and homelessness are at extreme risk of death if they contract COVID-19 and most do not have anywhere else to go. But, given the threat of COVID-19, that means the house requires far more PPE that usual. We will now have an ongoing need to purchase Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) at much higher rates than usual for as long as COVID-19 is a threat.
If and when a resident exhibits symptoms of COVID-19, they will need to be transported by Doug's House staff to get tested. Testing sites are discouraging the use of rideshare services and taxis and ambulances will not come to transport for testing. Therefore, we now need a van to safely transport residents exhibiting symptoms for testing. Use of staff's personal vehicles does not allow them to keep a safe distance, but a van would allow all to comply with recommending social distancing standards for necessary transport.
These are all new, unexpected, and unfunded expenses. Funds from HCRA would help ensure that Doug's House will have the money required to hire necessary staff, keep the necessary PPE supply stocked, and buy a van for safe transport, all so we can continue to admit and care for the most vulnerable in our community.
What new barriers to care our your clients/participants facing? Do you have a specific client story we can use?
A:
For the residents of Doug's House, it has been a challenge to be restricted from coming and going from the facility, to be restricted to seeing only the people that live and work in the house with no outside visitors, and to find ways to keep their minds, emotions, and bodies active and well. HIV treatment has transitioned to telemedicine appointments, but all other non-essential and non-urgent medical appointments have been cancelled for our residents. That means they are under less medical oversight and more likely to develop possibly life-threatening medical conditions that could go unchecked and untreated without necessary and ordinarily available medical testing. One Doug's House resident is being denied Hepatitis C testing that is necessary in order for Medicaid to pay for the related treatment. Therefore, this condition will likely go untreated and exasperate this resident's other very serious and advanced condition of cancer. Another resident has a heart condition and can no longer access regular cardiology screening and testing.
Funds from HCRA could help us provide Doug's House residents with art supplies, electronics, and more to keep their minds active and encourage mental and emotional wellness. Enough additional funding might even allow us to cover some unexpected, uncovered medical expenses brought on by this crisis.
Housing Program -
All of our residents that were employed have lost their jobs or been furloughed as a result of the pandemic. Our housing residents no longer have staff on site and most do not have the necessary coping skills to adjust and handle this crisis well. Our staff are pivoting to continue to provide services remotely. But the inability to have face to face time is a challenge and both staff and residents are having to learn to coordinate care and have effective communication through this crisis.
Funds from HCRA could help us provide our housing residents with cash assistance for food, bills, and other necessities through this crisis, especially for any that either do not qualify for benefits or have long gaps of periods between the time they loose income and the time they start receiving benefits.
Anything else that the Ride and our Virtual Riders can use when crafting fundraising asks?
A:
Here's one way contributions can make a difference for residents / staff -
$66 - one day of PPE for Doug's House