We offer healthcare for the most vulnerable people who risk being left behind by the mainstream health system – those dealing with homelessness and addiction.

Our Health Services division aims to support people with medical and wellbeing issues while improving their quality of life. We offer an alcohol and drug detoxification unit; a residential alcohol and drug rehabilitation program; day rehabilitation programs; community outreach programs; an aged care service for men who have experienced long-term homelessness; and a primary health clinic for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

As with other areas of our work, we are making strides towards working as ‘One Society’ in our delivery of health services. This financial year, data from our alcohol and other drug services were integrated into a centralised database of people we assist. As a result, our records on the health services we provide to clients were brought to a consistent standard with other Vinnies Services, allowing for a better understanding of the number of people we assist and which services they have received.

We demonstrated our commitment to serving people with disability and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples this year. Following recommendations from an accreditation assessment in 2019, we made progress to ensure our offices are accessible for people living with a disability. Meanwhile, onsite audits and an implementation workshop led both Rendu House in south-west Sydney and Freeman House in Armidale to develop culturally appropriate action plans to progressively improve their work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Our team at Freeman House also developed the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Wellbeing Program – Healing our Spirit, which was introduced with two successful nine-week rotations. The program was designed by our Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer at Freeman House, utilising resources from the Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Centre and Reconciliation Australia.

During the COVID-19 period, our drug and alcohol services continued to operate with new ways of service delivery. While our residential services continued to provide accommodation to people with social distancing practices in place, our office-based and outreach services such as Rosalie House, the New England Alcohol and Other Drug Outreach Program, Rendu House and Continuing Coordinated Care Program moved to remote phone and video appointments.

In 2019/20 our drug and alcohol services supported 172 people at the Rendu House Day Program, 428 people at Freeman House and 975 people with Coordinated Care Programs.

Freeman House, one of our alcohol and drug services supported 428 people over the past year.

Ray has seen more tough times than most. Having battled drug use, homelessness and family tragedy, the support of the St Vincent de Paul Society has helped during his darkest hours.

Becoming a father to a son by the time he was 20, while also caring for the daughter of his then-partner, a decline in the relationship saw things take a turn for the worse.

“I experimented with drugs from school, but it never got really out of hand until I lost custody of my son. After that I spent quite a number of years lounging between people’s houses before ending upon the streets,” Ray said.

During this time, he had his first interaction with the Society.

“I learnt on the streets that I could get a food parcel and they would point me in the right direction. In many ways Vinnies has been a lifesaver for me.”

Ray managed to get back on his feet, staying clean for 15 years and reconnecting with his son. But when his daughter suicided, he spiralled back into drug use.

“It started with just dabbling, and the next thing I was stuck in a situation where I was getting so sick that I had to use to function. I wasn’t trying to kill myself, but it was the direction I was going,” Ray said.

“I knew my son was disappointed every day, and that felt terrible. Knowing that there were people out there that cared brought me back on the path to recovery.”

With our support, along with his family and “good medical people,” Ray is now getting back on track.

“At Vinnies I can get real stuff which helps on the spot – a packet of cornflakes, tea, coffee, a bus fare, petrol money,” he said. “If you’re below par income-wise, it really affects your morale. Vinnies representatives will turn up and unconditionally assist in whatever way they can.”

Ray is optimistic about the next chapter of his life and hopes to a return to work as a labourer.

“I’m trying to maintain a healthy routine, eating-wise, sleeping-wise. I’m excited to get back into work.”

The Matthew Talbot Clinic is the onsite healthcare service at the Matthew Talbot Hostel. We provide a general practitioner and psychiatric services, optometry, podiatry, drop-in health assessments, smoking cessation, and metabolic health clinics, as well as help with heart failure, diabetes, and blood-borne viruses. We provide both in-house services and referrals to outside specialists such as dentists and cardiologists, all made possible by generous donations to the Society.

We needed to reduce the concentration of people within the hostel during COVID-19, and to facilitate this, the clinic shifted from an onsite service to a ‘pop-up’ model where our clinicians visited clients in the community.

As head of the Matthew Talbot Clinic, Julie Smith has a first-hand understanding of the issues facing the most vulnerable in our society.

“The clinic opens every single day of the year,” Julie said. “Throughout the day our nurses minister to the many complex needs of the people who arrive seeking our help. Mental health problems are stand-out issues, along with chronic illnesses and physical injuries.

“Homeless people die, on average, 25 years before their time. They often die of preventable illnesses. In a thriving country such as ours, this is not acceptable.”

The Matthew Talbot Clinic aims to provide excellent healthcare with as few barriers as possible to those who slip through the gaps of mainstream services.

“Our patients don’t have to make an appointment. They won’t be asked to wait for too long. They won’t be judged. They won’t be asked to pay. They don’t even have to know what is wrong with them. They can simply turn up and be assessed,” Julie said.

“We have lovely, caring, professional staff who genuinely want to make a difference. When a person can’t advocate for themselves, we will become their advocates.”