The team at St George’s NHS Trust launched in November 2021. It was initially commissioned via the out of hospital care fund for the pilot year and since then by the Southwest London ICB. They are currently made up of a GP/Clinical Lead, two Specialist Nurses, two Housing Officers and a Violence Reduction Lead. They are integrated into the Emergency Department within St George’s, with the management in this team also, and they take referrals from across the hospital including A&E and inpatients. Their inclusion criteria are persons over 18-years-old experiencing or at risk of homelessness and within inclusion health groups.  

The team works with patients as inpatients and aims to continue support in the community for up to six weeks after discharge. They also have one step down bed in a local hotel and have strong links with the Wandsworth Local Authority, including with the rough sleeper team and with the St George’s Hospital Charity. As a trauma centre they work with multiple boroughs across London and are part of the Southwest London Homeless Health Steering Group. Education is a big focus of the group, with the team delivering sessions across the hospital and local community. They have also developed a booklet of local services and support that has been distributed in the local area.  

The team is friendly, committed and passionate about their work, having helped to reduce rough sleeping in their patient group by 77% since launching, in addition to a 66% reduction in A&E attendances for frequent attenders. Their main aim is to give holistic health focused care with a strong multi-disciplinary approach.