These numbers are expected to continue to rise with the on-going housing crisis and rapidly increasing cost of food, compounded by the upcoming cuts to Medicaid, Medicare, Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

This training grant project will be supported by a multidisciplinary team of content experts in the Department of Family Medicine, including:

• Ben Adler, MD (Hepatitis C)
• Kyle Flattery, MD (Point of Care Ultrasound)
• Roberta Goldman, PhD (Evaluation)
• Matthew Perry, MD, MSc (Primary care street medicine)
• Mary Beth Sutter, MD, MPH (Perinatal OUD)
• Daria Szkwarko, DO, MPH (ECHO Hub Director)
• Julia Teck, MD, MPH (Evaluation)

Additionally, family medicine residents will be trained by street medicine specialists:

• Rebecca Karb, MD, PhD
• Megan Smith, PhD, MSW

All 48 Brown family medicine residents will be trained in the comprehensive care for unhoused patients, and they will participate in street outreach experiences. The grant project team will develop a street medicine track for residents interested in developing advanced street outreach skills and providing longitudinal care for local unhoused community members. 

This project will also support education and training in street medicine for Rhode Island primary care providers utilizing the ECHO hub and spoke training model. Through this HRSA-funded project, the Brown Family Medicine Residency Program hopes to cultivate a workforce of primary care providers who: 

1. Are well prepared to address the comprehensive health care needs of people experiencing homelessness, including those with substance use and mental health disorders;
2. Are well versed in community outreach strategies to deliver patient-centered, evidence-based care to those with limited primary care access;
3. Upon family medicine residency graduation, will continue to care for people experiencing homelessness in Rhode Island and beyond.