Julie Smith gives an insight into the Matthew Talbot Hostel Clinic
The Matthew Talbot Hostel Clinic is a one-of-a-kind service providing healthcare for those often overlooked by the mainstream health system.
Offering a range of general and specialist support for men experiencing homelessness, the Clinic delivered over 10,000 appointments, assisting 677 people in the last financial year, including 177 men accessing support for the first time.
Support ranges from dispensing medication, immunisations and referring patients to specialists, such as General Practitioners (GPs), podiatrists and optometrists. The Clinic also has access to an onsite psychiatrist during the week.
As one of the Clinic’s longest-serving team members, Julie Smith works on the frontline of a service that brings light to people going through the darkest of circumstances.
“We bear witness to their lives, and I think that's incredibly important. We are able to advocate for better services, better justice, better health."”
Emigrating to Australia from England in 1990 after working at University College Hospital in London, Julie’s experience attending to patients on a male medical ward, many of whom were homeless, put her in good stead to backfill a position at the Matthew Talbot Clinic.
What was intended to be a three-week role turned into a nine-year stint at the Clinic for Julie, who went onto do further study and work in mental health, and drug and alcohol support, before returning to the Clinic for a year in 2007.
Returning to the Clinic full-time in 2011, Julie recently celebrated 15 years in her latest stint as manager of the service.
“I really love working with homeless people. We run a seven day a week service, 365 days a year. It means that anyone can walk in any day. We can get them to see a GP – if they need to be seen that day, they’ll be prioritised. If they’ve got a serious mental illness, they’ll have a referral written by the GP and they will see a psychiatrist. We assess where someone is with their health, get them to see a doctor, diagnosed, treated and then monitor their treatment.”
Having a service tailored to the needs of people experiencing homelessness is especially important in light of recent events.
Reporting from Guardian Australia revealed that people experiencing homelessness die more than 30 years earlier than the general population, while the coroner examining the Bondi Junction Inquest recommended that the NSW government establish and support short- and long-term accommodation for people experiencing mental health issues and homelessness.
Many of the people supported through the Clinic have complex mental health issues with Schizophrenia ranking among the most common diagnoses.
“By providing a primary health clinic – the only one of its kind, probably in Australia, for homeless people – we are filling this huge gap in social justice and health care for the people we assist.”
Congratulations to Julie on her 15 year milestone as manager of the Matthew Talbot Hostel Clinic!