VA Homeless Programs
Message from Monica Diaz, Executive Director, VHA Homeless Programs Office
August 2023
For Veterans experiencing homelessness, a lack of transportation can lead to numerous hardships. It can be a barrier to stable employment, like it was for Veteran Yolanda Peters. It can lead to a lack of mobility, restricting them from caring for themselves properly, like it did for Veteran Pete Bigham.
And for many, it can also mean an inability to receive proper healthcare.
To help address the obstacles homeless Veterans face in accessing medical care, VA’s Homeless Patient Aligned Care Teams (HPACTS) have provided 25 select VA medical centers with mobile medical units (MMUs) — which will allow us to meet Veterans where they are to provide much needed services
The first MMU launched this month at the VA Orlando Healthcare System, with the rest rolling out over the next six months. These vans and trucks will move from one location to another to provide a private space for eligible Veterans to meet with medical providers — including mental health clinicians, social workers, and other staff that provide primary care, women’s health, audiology, laboratory, and telehealth services.
I’m proud that we’re now able to provide more Veterans with the care they need and deserve, despite the barriers that stand in our way. It reminds me that when we work together as a team, we can do truly incredible things.
Collaborating to work toward shared goals is one of the best ways to achieve greatness, and we see that often within VA’s homeless programs. Strategic collaboration is key to enabling us to help the most vulnerable Veteran populations.
Coordinated entry is just one example of this.
As was highlighted in our most recent Ending Veteran Homelessness podcast episode, coordinated entry encourages partnerships between local homeless agencies and stakeholders to improve the response system for Veterans, allowing the system to serve those experiencing homelessness with housing and other supportive services.
A single service entity might be able to help with one or two services that a Veteran may need. But with coordinated entry, we’re able to bring together multiple homeless service providers to bridge the gap, providing that Veteran with a comprehensive strategy for care.
While coordinated entry may sound like the solution to a lot of problems, it doesn’t come without issues of its own. Getting different groups to coordinate under a single mission, while they already have visions and goals of their own, can be complicated. Communication must be prioritized, as it helps ensure everyone is informed about what activities are taking place for which Veterans.
But despite these challenges, we know the reward is worth the effort.
“We need to be coordinated with our community partners,” said Eileen Devine, former national director for Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV). “We need to be relying on what they do best, their expertise in the communities, knowing that it is probably different than ours and would add to the care for homeless Veterans in our communities.”
We’re very appreciative of the organizations that assist with these efforts to help Veterans and look forward to the future of care regarding this critically important task.
Another effort that supports improving Veteran care is our Strategic Plan Summer 2023 Update. The plan outlines our vision for the future and highlights the necessary steps to achieve the lofty goal of ending Veteran homelessness. I encourage you to read it to get a sense of the objectives and strategies we’ll be working together on in the coming months.
All this talk of teamwork recalls a quote I think of often: “One man might not change the world, but a team will.”
No matter what part you play, we’re grateful to have you as a part of our team — and we hope to have your continued support on our journey to ending Veteran homelessness.
