Care Hub Honored for Homeless Advocacy

Anita Earl, LCSW,  isn’t afraid to ask the tough questions.

In fact, for years she has been approaching people on the streets of Corvallis and asking about their health so she can help them get the care they need.

In essence, Earl is often the hub of Samaritan Health Services’ homeless outreach program, which she started several years ago. A team of social workers, nurses and community health workers are the spokes that complete the wheel of the Samaritan Health Services Care Hub.

Although she still goes down to encampments on the river or makes contacts on the streets, as the Hub manager Earl now often asks lodging providers such as local hotels to assist with beds so houseless patients can recover form medical treatments with dignity.  

“I would propose the idea to various organizations,” Earl said. “‘Hey, I wonder if you would consider renting us a bed in your hotel,’ and slowly but surely these organizations became more and more willing and bit by bit by bit I’ve been able to grow the efforts.”

One location of respite beds is Corvallis Housing First’s Third Street Commons, where one third of their clients are referred by the Care Hub team.

Efforts like these are what brought the Care Hub’s Carrie Manley, RN, BSN, Susan Avila, LCSW, and Earl front and center to accept this year’s Corvallis Housing First Housing Hero award. The Unity Shelter was also given hero recognition at the ceremony.

“Every week the Care Hub team has been on-site providing care and follow-up so folks can stay out of the Emergency Room,” Dan Easdale, Corvallis Housing First program director said. “Our connection to this team has helped us identify and house many of our most fragile and desperately ill unhoused community members.”

The award was given to the Care Hub team at this year’s Spring into Housing fundraising breakfast.

“They felt like our outreach, social work and nursing efforts with the unhoused were significant and this is touching,” Earl said.

Samaritan’s Care Hub includes a team of social workers and nurses that provide care to the most marginalized of Benton, Lincoln and Linn counites.

 “They check on people living in tents, in their cars, shelters, etc., in whatever weather,” Easdale said. “They follow up when they leave the hospital, they check wounds, they encourage and hand out huge doses of compassion.”

A great example Earl shares is a man she befriended while on a walk. Earl observed a lesion on his forehead while talking to him.

That meeting led to the man’s enrollment with the Care Hub, which led to treatment. In the end,  Samaritan’s services were able to find him a place to live his last days with dignity.

Corvallis Housing First noted the special niche that the Care Hub fills in the tri-county communities.

“The Care Hub patients are often very ill, they have cancer, strokes, heart failure, need surgery, had surgery, every illness imaginable,” Easdale said. “Imagine what it must feel like to be sick and alone and outside. But also, what it must feel like when this group of angels shows up at your tent or car to check on you.”

Learn more about Samaritan Health Services Care Hub .