OGDEN — Beginning this week, a new mobile outreach clinic is being used to help homeless people who are found on the streets and in encampments. The new resource was made available with the help of a state grant that also paid for two homeless advocates who now work in the Ogden Fire Department.
Ogden Fire Chief Mike Slater said the resource will ultimately help reduce the number of 911 ambulance calls, as people get to know the advocates and get used to seeing the clinic around the city.
"Where people are in parks and encampments now, they'll know our clinic," Slater explained. "We'll pull up. We'll see if they have any medical needs or sometimes just somebody to talk to, and sometimes their humanitarian needs."
Slater said that through the advocate program alone, the department has already seen a sharp decline in ambulance calls to shelters, as people now have contacts they can turn to for needs that aren't emergencies. The outreach clinic is stocked with first-aid supplies, and a number of other medical needs, including a defibrillator. There are also blankets, supplies for hygiene, water, and a few toys and coloring books for kids.
"We're able to address almost all their needs," Slater said. "And if they want long-term help, like they need to get registered for Medicaid or Medicare, or they need a doctor's appointment, or maybe it's an elderly person that actually qualifies to be in a skilled nursing facility, we can start that route and put them down the right path to get long-term care."
