Epstein Street Medicine Program

Life-Saving Healthcare Delivered Right Where People Are

Project HOME’s Epstein Street Medicine Program provides point-of-contact medical care to individuals experiencing homelessness in Philadelphia, with a focus on those unsheltered, primarily in Kensington. 

Through holistic, person-centered, trauma-informed care delivered through a harm-reduction lens, the team aims to improve medical outcomes and enhance access to healthcare and support services. The street medicine team partners with a dedicated Project HOME street outreach team to provide medical services and establish trust. 

Many individuals experiencing homelessness live with a “tri-morbidity” consisting of psychiatric disorders, substance use disorders, and chronic medical conditions. The team engages and empowers these individuals to be active participants in their healthcare and assists them in navigating healthcare systems in Philadelphia if specialty or emergency care becomes necessary. 

The team consists of three nurse practitioners and a registered nurse backed with plans to expand mental and behavioral health support with a psychiatric nurse practitioner. This team is supported by Project HOME’s larger Healthcare Services department and is presently the only mobile medical team to provide primary and preventive care services to unsheltered individuals right where they are. 

Targeted Services And Support

The street medicine team provides complex chronic wound management and medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD, including buprenorphine), along with care for the management of diabetes, hypertension, asthma, vascular disorders, Hepatitis C, and HIV. 

The team also screens for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) right where the patient is in the street and offers access to women’s health care and contraception.

Project HOME’s Street Medicine Team is committed to partnering with organizations and healthcare providers in Philadelphia and beyond to improve the way individuals experiencing homelessness access care. To learn more or discuss collaborative opportunities, contact Program Director Kara Cohen at [email protected].

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Project HOME's Healthcare Services is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) and we are able to provide our services regardless of a person’s ability to pay for the services. In cases where an individual lacks health insurance, we offer a discounted sliding fee program.

Project HOME receives HHS funding and has Federal Public Health Service (PHS) deemed status with respect to certain health or health-related claims including medical malpractice claims for itself and its covered individuals.