Wolverine Street Medicine

Help us provide high-quality medical care to people experiencing homelessness in Ann Arbor and southeast Michigan by giving to our campaign! People experiencing homelessness have countless barriers to receiving medical care. Wolverine Street Medicine brings services to people where they live, regardless of situation, to overcome those barriers. Help us continue that work!

Every day, people experiencing homelessness show up at hospitals and emergency departments with severe medical conditions that could be avoided by preventive care, health education, and vaccination. Barriers to care and social determinants of health lead to high rates of diabetes, hypertension, and vaccine-preventable illness in people experiencing homelessness. These conditions often go undiagnosed and untreated until late stages of disease resulting in major health risks and hospitalizations that could have been avoided. Breaking down barriers to care and repairing the relationship between people experiencing homelessness and medical professionals is key to improving health and wellness in our communities.

Wolverine Street Medicine is a student-led medical group that provides free medical services to people experiencing homelessness through mobile outreach visits and barrier-free shelter clinics in Detroit and Washtenaw county. But we need your help to continue offering our patients basic medical services. In the past year, we have started the following initiatives:

• Foot Care Clinics: We have expanded our foot care clinics and formed a new partnership with U of M Podiatry at our Jackson Foot Care Clinics
• Michigan Street Medicine Symposium: We helped to plan and attended the 2nd annual Michigan Street Medicine Symposium
• Street Medicine Institute: We became a member of the Street Medicine Institute and attended the International Street Medicine Conference in Kansas City, Missouri
• Healthcare for Homeless Elective: We have updated and expanded our Healthcare for the Homeless elective curriculum
• Inventory System: We moved to a new UMMS storage room, which allowed us to create and maintain a live-updated inventory of our supplies
• Street Medicine Blitz: We participated in the first-ever Detroit “Street Medicine Blitz” where many street medicine organizations conducted outreach to better understand community needs and share resources
• Pre-Med Volunteers: We have expanded to include undergraduate pre-med volunteers to assist with clinic intake on Detroit street medicine runs

Your support will allow us to continue to expand our organization's initiatives to better meet the needs of our population. Your gift can truly make a difference in various ways including:

• $10 pays for 20 dental kits for patients that include a toothbrush, toothpaste, and mouthwash
• $20 covers nicotine replacement therapy for one client interested in quitting cigarette smoking
• $25 funds enough syringes to administer 200 vaccines
• $50 covers gas for one week of WSM’s mobile outreach
• $100 provides one week of bagged lunches that assist with outreach and provide our patients with a healthy meal
• $150 immunizes three adults against pneumonia
• $650 covers the monthly cost of our van/mobile-clinic lease
• $1,000 immunizes 30 adults against vaccine-preventable illnesses

With your help, we can provide the basic medical services that all people experiencing homelessness deserve throughout Wayne and Washtenaw counties!