Homelessness and health care: considerations for evaluation, management, and support within the primary care domain.

摘要

There are significant challenges to addressing the health needs of the homeless. The complex nature of homelessness, coupled with the crippling effects of poverty, limit the extent to which primary care providers are able to effectively deliver care within a traditional clinical environment. To provide appropriate and supportive patient care, the clinical practice of the primary care provider should be augmented to include considerations for the broader social determinants of health. Only then can we begin to assure the human right to health for the most visibly impoverished among us.