Overcoming socioeconomic barriers to provide primary care

HCC workers did not just provide practical help; their emotional support was just as critical to ensuring Vincent’s compliance with treatment.

On top of this, Vincent has various health concerns. Health Care Connections (HCC), a SEMPHN-funded service delivered by MCM which launched in April 2024, has helped him overcome some of the barriers homelessness can present to help him access the care he needs. 

HCC leverages MCM’s extensive experience in connecting individuals at risk of or experiencing homelessness with primary health care services, with a special focus on linking people to GPs experienced in providing these services. The program also promotes local coordination between services, supporting service providers with the skills and systems they need to provide effective, integrated care in conjunction with an individual's usual primary care provider.

As at 30 June 2025, MCM had assisted 128 people through the HCC program. 

Vincent, who is in his early 50s, has a history of homelessness but is currently living in a bed-sit single room property with support from housing workers at Neami National. Neami referred Vincent to HCC following a lung cancer diagnosis, seeking support to connect him with health services and help him attend various medical appointments. 

Numerous barriers were preventing Vincent from accessing the care he needed. He had no phone, identification, or means of transport. He had no family support, and his peers were a negative influence. He had limited cognitive comprehension, further complicated by complex mental health and substance use that could trigger psychotic episodes. 

HCC workers organised transport for Vincent to all his appointments, during which they would check if he understood what was happening and what the doctor was communicating, asking him to repeat back what he had heard to check comprehension. 

They advocated for him, communicating his needs to healthcare staff when he was unable to, and followed up with services when needed. They also helped him get to and from the pharmacy to ensure he had all necessary medications.

As a result of HCC’s support, Vincent was able to complete a full course of radiation treatment in hospital. While this would usually have been delivered via 6 low doses, the HCC workers organised for 4 high-dose treatments instead, knowing this would improve the likelihood of Vincent completing the full course. 

HCC workers did not just provide practical help; their emotional support was just as critical to ensuring Vincent’s compliance with treatment. They stayed by his side throughout the process, talking to him and asking questions about music and other things they knew interested him to keep him feeling calm, comfortable and safe while he was in hospital. 

On his way out of the hospital after his final treatment, Vincent suddenly doubled back towards the treatment room. The HCC workers and hospital staff ran after him, concerned he would try to re-enter, which would be unsafe due to the radiation. However, they soon realised his true intention: to thank the doctors and specialists who had cared for him, and the HCC workers who had supported him.

*Client’s name has been changed to protect their anonymity.