Addressing Needs of People Experiencing Homelessness During COVID-19 - CORE Coffee Chat (9-22-20)
Channel: Core Investments
Date: 2020-09-22

Hosts: Nicole Young & Nicole Lezin
Description:
How do you shelter in place during a pandemic if you don’t have shelter? What if you do have shelter, but it’s in a crowded living space that increases your risk of exposure to COVID? Or what if you’ve been exposed to COVID and need to quarantine, but don’t have a safe, healthy place to stay? As a contagious virus, COVID is a particular danger to people living in overcrowded conditions or without easy access to handwashing or other protective equipment, such as people experiencing homelessness. 

In Santa Cruz County, local leaders have joined forces to make more safe shelter accessible to those who need it. The logistics and coordination involve many different players and systems to identify and reach out to those in need, set up safe spaces, develop protocols, operate as smoothly as possible, and troubleshoot when issues arise, 24/7.

Our Coffee Chat guests included several local leaders who have been working on creative solutions that provide shelter and safety to people who are unhoused or have been exposed to COVID and need a place to be isolated and quarantined from others:
• Leslie Goodfriend, COVID Shelter and Care Branch Lead, Human Services Department
• Joey Crottogini, Health Center Manager, Homeless Persons Health Project, Health Services Agency
• Tom Stagg, Director of Programs, Housing Matters
• Monica Lippi, Senior Analyst, Smart Path to Housing and Health, Human Services Department 

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