Surgery, Nursing, and Homelessness: Opportunities and Challenges

Description

Join us for a webinar exploring the complex challenges and transformative possibilities of providing surgical care for people experiencing homelessness.

Despite suffering from disproportionately high rates of physical trauma and injury, people experiencing homelessness frequently encounter significant obstacles to accessing high-quality surgical care, ranging from bureaucratic constraints to long-standing patterns of discrimination and mistrust. Meanwhile, for those who do make it to the operating theatre, the recovery process is similarly complex. Patients can often find themselves discharged back onto the street or into precarious accommodation, which can in turn delay and disrupt post-operative healing. However, at the same time, surgical procedures can provide health and social care professionals with a valuable opportunity: a chance to work with patients to identify their underlying needs and arrange access to healthcare, housing, and social support.

In this 90-minute webinar, we will explore the complex challenges and transformative possibilities of providing surgical treatment for people experiencing homelessness. We will investigate the common challenges and obstacles that delay or prevent individuals from accessing surgical care, as well as the significant challenges homelessness creates for patients’ post-operative recovery and long-term follow-up. More broadly, this webinar will provide an opportunity to discuss what surgeons and other healthcare professionals can do to address issues of homelessness, poverty, and social inequality in their everyday work.

This webinar will also provide a unique opportunity to hear the perspective of a patient with recent experience of surgery and homelessness, exploring the physical and emotional impact of prolonged injury and the transformative effects of a successful operation.

Estimated audience numbers (if applicable)

50

Period	26 Apr 2021
Event title	Surgery, Nursing, and Homelessness: Opportunities and Challenges
Event type	Seminar
Degree of Recognition	National