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Building the webinar community where have been able to share information and resources, support one another, and be in regular conversation has been one of the bright spots of our collective work through the challenges of the pandemic. We are so grateful to connect with each of you. After nearly three years of gathering weekly, we are shifting the webinar schedule from weekly to monthly. Webinars will be the first Wednesday of the month from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. The webinars scheduled for November 23 and November 30 have been cancelled. We look forward to seeing you for our first monthly webinar on December 7! While we may be gathering less frequently, we look forward to continuing the work ahead together. We are grateful for your heart and commitment to supporting people facing homelessness.
With this change, we will continue to provide information and updates on COVID-19. If COVID cases begin to rise or we find that monthly webinars don’t provide enough touchpoints, we will reassess and increase the frequency of the webinars.
If you need to be in touch with our team in between webinars, please don’t hesitate to reach out! You can email elizabeth.dressel@state.mn.us and she will get you connected to the correct state staff person. If you have a COVID specific question, you can email Health.R-Congregate@state.mn.us to get in touch with the COVID-19 Highly Impacted Settings Unit. Visit us at our website, mich.mn.gov to find additional information on the justice strategic plan, COVID-19 resources, and past webinar materials.
The beginning 10 minutes of each monthly webinar will be held to hear from the speakers bureau. Anyone who has lived experience of homelessness is welcome to sign-up to share through the Speakers Bureau. This is open time each month for lived experience experts to share ideas and feedback with the webinar audience. Additional details can be found on this flyer.
The next webinar Speakers Bureau will be on Wednesday, December 7 at 1:00 p.m. There is a monthly prep session held the Tuesday before the webinar. The prep session will be Tuesday, December 6 from 3:00-3:30 p.m. Follow this link to join the prep session. This is an ongoing opportunity that happens each month. Please email elizabeth.dressel@state.mn.us or call Elizabeth at 651-248-5548 with any questions or to sign up.
MDH is offering a new therapeutics navigator service to support access to COVID-19 therapeutics in shelters. If you have a shelter guest who tests positive for COVID-19 and who may benefit from medications, you can now request the assistance of a therapeutics navigator to help you and/or the patient access medication. We encourage you to request navigation assistance if you have questions, need coordination support, or if you aren’t sure where to start!
The therapeutics navigator can support the following activities:
- Identify a healthcare provider to conduct a medical assessment and prescribe COVID-19 therapeutics
- Schedule appointments including telehealth visits where available
- Arrange transportation for medical visits and prescription pick-up or delivery
As a reminder, people do not need to be very sick to benefit from therapeutics. People may be eligible for COVID-19 therapeutics if they:
- Test positive for SARS-CoV-2 (PCR or antigen)
- Have mild to moderate symptoms of COVID-19
- Are within 5-7 days of symptom onset, and
- Are at high risk for developing severe illness from COVID-19
To request the support of a therapeutics navigator, complete this navigator request form.
Please note that this service is in the pilot phase so as you engage with the therapeutics navigator service, please let us know what is working well and what we can do to improve moving forward! Contact the therapeutics navigator, Fadumo Egal (Fadumo.Egal.Contractor@state.mn.us) or the COVID-19 Highly Impacted Settings Unit (Health.R-congregate@state.mn.us) if you have any questions or concerns about the therapeutics navigator service.
MDH has re-launched its COVID-19 Vaccination Request Form for Congregate Settings: COVID-19 Vaccination Event Request Form for Congregate Settings. The form is open to staff at congregate settings, such as shelters, transitional and supportive housing facilities, and day centers, as well as food shelves and outreach programs. Settings can request vaccine clinics for COVID-19 first shots, second shots, and boosters, as well as the annual influenza vaccine. Settings can also request to have a Harm Reduction Team available at the clinic to offer overdose prevention and response training, distribution of opioid overdose reversal kits (i.e., naloxone), distribution of safer use supplies including syringe exchange (distribution of sterile syringes, collection of used syringes), rapid HIV/Hepatitis C testing and linkage to care.
Cases among people experiencing homelessness and the staff who support continues to remain steady this week. The MDH team continues to monitor cases and our team continues to plan alongside local public health and emergency management on ways to be best prepared to support people experiencing homelessness through any future surges. If you are looking for any information or resources, you can find information at https://mich.mn.gov/covid-19 or email Health.R-Congregate@state.mn.us.
Help us spread the word about a new newsletter for engagement opportunities for people who have faced or are currently facing homelessness. The Minnesota Interagency Council on Homelessness is building a new newsletter list to share opportunities for people who have faced or are currently facing homelessness to share their input, ideas, and expertise. Interested individuals can sign up for the newsletter by filling out this form. We will share a range of opportunities in this newsletter from state agencies and partner organizations and the newsletter will be sent out as opportunities are available. Please email elizabeth.dressel@state.mn.us if you have questions.
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