West Hollywood partners with UCLA for homeless health care

Wave Staff Report

WEST HOLLYWOOD — The city is partnering with UCLA Health Homeless Healthcare Collaborative to bring UCLA’s mobile health care clinic to West Hollywood on a monthly basis to serve people experiencing homelessness.

UCLA Health will host walk-up health care services from 1 to 3 p.m. Dec. 19 at West Hollywood Park and from noon to 2:30 p.m. Jan. 10 at Plummer Park. Services will be provided at no cost.

The Homeless Healthcare Collaborative mobile team provides urgent care, wound care, medical screenings, preventive care, vaccinations, care for chronic medical conditions and referrals to social service supports that benefit community members experiencing homelessness. Additional service dates will be announced after the pilot launches.

“We deeply appreciate the partnership with UCLA Health in bringing their innovative Homeless Healthcare Collaborative to West Hollywood,” Mayor Lauren Meister said. “Through the West Hollywood Homeless Initiative, we are working to increase access to services and support that help people on the path back into housing.

“Making UCLA Health services available within the city makes it easier to get health care.”

According to UCLA Health, the stressors and barriers people face when experiencing homelessness lead to higher rates of chronic disease, social isolation, increased morbidity and mortality, fragmented service use, and poor primary care experiences.

According to UCLA Health data, 85% of emergency department visits for people experiencing homelessness are due to primary- or urgent-care conditions that can be prevented or treated in the community.

By partnering with the UCLA Health Homeless Healthcare Collaborative, the city is adding to its existing health services funded by the social services grants program to meet the needs of community members experiencing homelessness. Healthcare in Action provides on-call health services in the city’s parks and public spaces and LA LGBT Center offers comprehensive, ongoing health services at its nearby clinic.

The city also has collaborative partnerships with Saban Community Clinic and Cedars-Sinai.

The city’s Human Services and Rent Stabilization Department’s Strategic Initiatives Division oversees the West Hollywood Homeless Initiative in coordination with the city’s Social Services Division. The Homeless Initiative is a multi-disciplinary, multi-agency collaborative response, which includes multiple city departments, city-funded social service agencies, the West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, and Los Angeles County agencies.

Through the West Hollywood Homeless Initiative, in partnership with the community and with funding support from Los Angeles County’s Measure H, the city established a five-year plan to address homelessness in 2018.

If you are concerned about a community member who is homeless, call the West Hollywood Homeless Initiative Concern Line at (323) 848-6590. If your concern requires time-sensitive assistance during nights or weekends, call the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station at (310) 855-8850.

For more information about the city’s Homeless Initiative, contact Elizabeth Anderson, the city’s strategic initiatives program administrator, at 323-848-6839.