Illumination Foundation Brings Healthcare Programs & Resources to Orange County’s Homeless

IRVINE, Calif. - Sept. 9, 2013 - PRLog -- Orange County, Calif. – September 3, 2013 – With many changes in healthcare on the horizon, one Orange County non-profit is taking extra measures to ensure even the most vulnerable persons of the community do not go unidentified. The Illumination Foundation (http://www.ifhomeless.org/), a 501(c)(3) that works to better the lives of Orange County’s homeless, is partnering with the National Health Care for the Homeless Council (http://www.nhchc.org/) and St. Joseph Hospital (http://www.sjo.org/) to bring new medical resources to Orange County’s low-income and homeless communities. The Chronic Care PLUS program diverts these individuals, whose frequent emergency room visits are costly to taxpayers, to local community clinics where they can receive ongoing and affordable care.

The Illumination Foundation recognized the need for additional healthcare guidance for Orange County’s homeless in 2008, when a homeless patient recovering from a diabetes-related condition was ready to be discharged from the hospital, yet had no place to go.  The Illumination Foundation stepped in to ensure that the patient had proper post-hospital care, which would prevent return emergency room visits and better her overall health. This patient was appointed an in-home health nurse and connected with a permanent residence. Without this assistance, the patient’s unmonitored release could have resulted in her eventual re-admittance, requiring further costly emergency treatment and hospital stay.

This case exemplifies the Illumination Foundation and St. Joseph Hospital’s Chronic Care PLUS program. Upon release from the ER, homeless patients will be taken to a nearby community clinic, such as the Illumination Foundation’s Buena Park Community Clinic. At the clinic, patients are assisted with enrollment in MediCal, SSI, and CalFresh. The Community Clinic also provides connections to mental health support, substance abuse treatment services, supportive housing, and more. The Chronic Care PLUS program will identify and enroll the 20 patients from St. Joseph Hospital who most frequently use the emergency department as their primary care provider.

“We are excited to see the encouragement of affordable healthcare for all with the upcoming ObamaCare policy changes,” said the Illumination Foundation’s CEO and Founder Paul Leon. “We are taking extra steps to make sure Orange County’s homeless and less-fortunate get the medical help they need and assist with signing up for any government benefits they are eligible for. This model is proven to improve health, while reducing overall costs to the community. We hope this model can eventually be practiced at hospitals throughout the entire county.”

To educate the healthcare community about the Illumination Foundation’s new programs, Leon is speaking at the West Coast Health & Housing Training Symposium (http://www.nhchc.org/2013/07/west-coast-health-housing-tr...)September 18-20 at the Hyatt Regency in Irvine. The conference will bring together individuals and organizations that work toward bettering the lives of homeless persons throughout the western U.S. The Illumination Foundation is  helping National Health Care for the Homeless Council host the Training Symposium, with sponsor support from Kaiser Permanente and Wells Fargo in hopes to improve healthcare access and quality for all.

“Irvine has a large community of homeless healthcare supporters,” said Julie Miller-Phipps, Senior Vice President and Executive Director of Kaiser Permanente Orange County. “We look forward to learning with and from Orange County’s local businesses who are as committed to the challenge of homelessness as we are.”

Learn more about the conference at http://www.nhchc.org. Learn more about the Chronic Care PLUS program and the Illumination Foundation at www.ifhomeless.org

About Illumination Foundation

The Illumination Foundation is an Orange County-based 501(c)(3)  nonprofit dedicated to providing targeted, interdisciplinary services for the most vulnerable homeless clients to break or prevent the cycle of homelessness. The Illumination Foundation pioneered an innovative and cost-effective solution to advance health and housing stability for the chronically homeless community. Illumination Foundation provides free mental health, medical and outreach services to homeless families and individuals at clinics throughout the country. To date, Illumination Foundation’s housing programs have served 1,183 families and placed 520 families into permanent housing. Illumination Foundation’s medical programs have provided medical and social services to 8,718 patients. For more information, visit www.ifhomeless.org.