Congratulations to the 2023 Seed Grant Winners! 
The Street Medicine Institute’s Seed Grant program furthers SMI’s mission of assisting communities to establish their own Street Medicine programs. Now in its third year, the program facilitates and enhances the direct provision of health care to rough sleepers where they live by providing communities and clinicians with expert training, guidance, and support to develop and grow their own Street Medicine programs. We were delighted to have received fifteen deserving and qualified applications in 2023.
We are pleased to announce that this year's Seed Grant recipients are Daily Planet Health Services in Richmond, Virginia and HealthNet’s Homeless Initiative Program Street Medicine Team in Bloomington, Indiana. Both programs will receive a year of SMI Membership and free registration for the International Street Medicine Symposium. Further, each has been awarded a grant in the amount of $10,000 and a year of intensive consultative support from Street Medicine experts. Congratulations!
Daily Planet Health Services
Established in 1969, Daily Planet Health Services (DPHS) is a federally qualified health center in Richmond, Virginia. DPHS’ primary population is individuals experiencing homelessness and housing instability, including those living in and around public housing and in shared housing (doubling up). Comprehensive care services are provided via an integrated model that includes medical care, mental health, substance use treatment, oral health, pharmacy counseling, health education, case management and outreach. Individuals experiencing homelessness are DPHS’ primary population, accounting for upwards of 70% of patients in calendar year 2022.
In June 2021, DPHS launched what has become an integrated medical outreach program with the introduction of its mobile medical unit. Staffed by a nurse practitioner, medical assistant, outreach worker and supported by registration staff in person or virtually, the unit visits community partners across the city and counties on a recurring basis. In March 2022, the program expanded to include a street medicine program- the first of its kind in Richmond. Pairing a nurse practitioner with an outreach worker, the street medicine program is able to truly meet people where they are – under bridges, along riverbanks and in encampments around the city. More recently, a behavioral health clinician has been added to the team on a recurring basis.
The ability to bring an individual experiencing homelessness into care outside of a clinic setting is a tremendous step forward in decreasing barriers to both medical and behavioral health care. Trauma, social anxiety, and the like are often associated with health clinics for DPHS’ primary patient population; DPHS is able to leverage the trust its outreach team has with individuals and introduce medical providers in a non-threatening manner. As they look ahead to the next twelve months, the team is excited that street medicine clients now have access to a hybrid medical outreach team member to help maintain continuity of, and engagement in, care.
HealthNet Homeless Initiative Program Street Medicine Team
The HealthNet Homeless Initiative Program Street Medicine Team was developed in Bloomington, Indiana in late 2021, after hearing from the community about its unhoused population’s high need for medical and psychiatric services. The Street Medicine team includes two outreach case managers, two part time Family Nurse Practitioners, one Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner, and one social worker.
The team meets each client where they are, providing medical and psychiatric care to meet their unique needs and to determine a healthcare goal with which the client is comfortable. Medical and psychiatric care includes wound care, prescribing and/or dispensing prescription and over-the-counter medications, lab draws, counseling regarding medication and acute/chronic illness, determination of need for emergent or specialty care, and reducing harm through simple interventions such as providing sunscreen, clean socks, and condoms.
The Street Medicine Team also works to help unhoused individuals achieve primary care, when they are ready, by setting up appointments and helping with transportation if needed, and on connections to housing, local resources, and help obtaining vital documents. Over the next year, the team hopes to become a premier street medicine team with a focus on providing holistic care that is as unique as each client they encounter, and to build foundational care that allows those they serve to feel heard, loved, and healthier.
