[NEWS] Vaccinations at the Hub of Hope could start next week
From the Kensington Voice:
Since COVID-19 hit Philadelphia last March, homeless service providers have faced shelter outbreaks, staff shortages, emotional exhaustion, and, at times, the pressure to solve a complex crisis with no simple solution. Now, some are scrambling to put together a vaccination plan for their clients — with little support from the city’s Department of Public Health.
“There’s never a good solution for people that are vulnerable, and sick, and are living in a shelter with COVID because it doesn’t ever feel safe where they’re at,” said Dr. Ivel Morales, the clinic medical director at Project HOME’s Hub of Hope, a daytime respite for people experiencing homelessness in the city.
Like other homeless service providers, the Hub began screening and testing guests for COVID-19 in late March. Since then, they say they’ve been doing their best to keep the crisis under control. On Thursday, the health department told the Hub that they could start vaccinating some patients with leftover vaccines from the Stephen Klein Wellness Center, a Project HOME site.
Whether or not the Hub can get a vaccination clinic running by that time depends on securing volunteers and the vaccine supplies, Morales said. As of Friday, the vaccines were still sitting at Stephen Klein Wellness Center.
