Doctor’s Diary July 23, 2018: The homeless senior

(Snippets from the frontline)

The homeless senior

Think about it.  What would you do if you can no longer afford your home, and must move out onto the street?  What would you do if you are not only destitute, but also 80 years old?

How do you cope with the elements?  How do you physically protect yourself?  Where will you get your next meal, let alone any medicine you might need?

Is she someone’s grandmother, or is he a veteran?

Seniors are facing this everyday in our country. 

What can we do?  Start with the basics:

-prioritize who we get off the streets first:  families with children, elder seniors, veterans;

-provide bathrooms and showers, and a place to launder clothes;

-have a safe, indoor place to sleep;

-provide daily meals;

-then do the social work part in evaluating who has mental illness, drug addiction, or just those who can work and need a second chance;

-look for seniors on the brink of homelessness, and initiate preventive programs to pull them back from the edge.

As homelessness continues to worsen, let us be prepared to have humanity guide us in combating this problem.

Gene Uzawa Dorio, M.D.