Medical Respite for the Homeless: Barriers and Facilitators to Implementation in The Municipality of Anchorage

Abstract

By bridging the gap between the discharge of a homeless individual from the hospital to a state of improved health, medical respite (MRs) programs have been shown to contribute to improved health outcomes and decreased healthcare costs. The question does not appear to be whether a MR program would benefit the Anchorage community, rather, what is the perceived need, how can we best implement this intervention, and what form would it take? The purpose of this project therefore was to explore answers to these questions through identification of barriers and facilitators to the implementation of MR services for the homeless in the Municipality of Anchorage. Data was collected through a series of semi-structured interviews with key informants. Reported barriers and facilitators were encompassed by 12 themes and classified according to the framework of Grol and Wensing (2004). The greatest number of barriers were identified within the social context level, while the most facilitators were perceived at the organizational context level. The process of reaching out to community leaders and key informants through the course of this project has contributed to an improved understanding of barriers and facilitators, provided recommendations for implementation, and has engaged key individuals in the MR discussion.