At the Intersection of Homeless Encampments and Heroin Addiction: Service Use Barriers, Facilitators, and Recommendations from the City of Philadelphia’s Encampment Resolution Pilot

ABSTRACT

We provide an overview of the pilot and evaluation measures used for an independent evaluation of the Encampment Resolution Pilot (ERP) wherein the City of Philadelphia closed two homeless encampments in May 2018 and sought to assist those displaced by the closures with housing and treatment services. The evaluation used the Rapid Assessment, Response, and Evaluation method to collect qualitative findings on service use barriers and facilitators from open-ended interviews with people staying in the encampments (N = 27) and service providers (N = 10). We assessed how the ERP allowed providers to “push the system” by removing access barriers, and providing amenable, effective, and accessible housing and drug treatment services that led to more widely adopted best practices. However, there was a clear need for additional supportive services and aftercare for those exiting treatment. Providers also cited a need for more integrated medical and mental health services.

KEYWORDS:

• Homeless
• encampments
• opioid use disorder

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the City of Philadelphia.