Introduction of a homeless health outreach team in Northern New South Wales: is acute service usage reduced?

Objective To examine if there is a relationship between introducing a Homeless Health Outreach Team (HHOT) and reduced acute Mental Health service usage. Methods Electronic Medical Record (EMR) data were collected on a group of clients of the Tweed Byron HHOT 6 months before and after establishing the service. The data were evaluated for demographics, and differences in Emergency Department (ED) presentations, mental health admissions, length of stay and community mental health engagement. Results The introduction of the team coincided with a significant reduction in ED presentations and an increase in community mental health engagement. There was an overall reduction in bed days but an increase in mean length of stay for those admitted post-intervention. Conclusions The establishment of the HHOT coincided with reduced acute mental health service usage via ED and inpatient Mental Health Units (MHU). There is scope for expansion of such a service as well as exploration of costings analysis. A long-term focus on ‘housing first’ and outreach approaches to homeless service provision could improve individual and service provision outcomes.