HERE
In 2019 the BC-CfE opened the Hope to Health (H2H) Clinic in the Downtown Eastside (DTES) of Vancouver. The clinic provides interdisciplinary care based on best-evidence for urban and marginalized communities.
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The Hope to Health Engagement and Retention Evaluation (HERE) Study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the H2H service delivery model and will pilot a mobile phone-based digital health intervention, WelTel, to improve engagement in primary healthcare (PHC) among H2H clients. In order to improve clients’ health outcomes, the study inquires about housing status, mental health, food security, social supports, substance use and treatment, and use of ancillary health services at H2H.
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Having reached their initial recruitment target of 500 participants, the HERE Study has reopened recruitment to H2H clients on an ongoing basis. If you’re a client at H2H and interested in participating, drop in to the clinic and ask to speak to a member of the HERE team.
STUDIES MENU
The HERE Study’s Research Objectives are:
- To characterize the medical and social needs; and measure client retention in PHC among clients of the newly-established H2H Centre and to measure the potential acceptability of the mobile phones and WelTel service among marginalized residents of the DTES with mental health and substance-use disorders.
- To assess the use of mobile phones and the WelTel service as an added tool to facilitate regular engagement in PHC among marginalized residents of the DTES over a six-month period.
- To measure the effectiveness of an adapted version of the WelTel mobile health intervention to further improve engagement in PHC for DTES residents with complex medical needs.
- To measure the health systems impact of the H2H delivery model and WelTel interventions in terms of reducing acute medical care services, hospitalizations, and mortality among H2H clients in comparison to other DTES residents accessing VCH services with similar medical profiles.