DPH street care
Our goal is to provide people experiencing homelessness with lifesaving medical, mental health and substance use care. When someone is ready for care, our teams are there to support.
Our street care teams
Street Medicine
The Street Medicine program provides street-based health care for people experiencing homelessness. The aim is to reduce the number of fatal overdoses, infectious diseases, and medical emergencies by bringing medical, mental health, and substance use services to people who struggle to access healthcare.
BEST Neighborhood Teams
The BEST Neighborhood Teams works in assigned neighborhoods to provide services to people experiencing homelessness who have complex mental health and/or substance use challenges. The goal of the neighborhood-based street care program is to link people to immediate behavioral health care and shelter.
Night Navigation Team
The Night Navigation team reaches out to people experiencing homelessness every night from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. with the goal of bringing people into substance use treatment. This team connects individuals with on-the-spot telehealth visits with an addiction medicine provider and a safe and supportive place to start treatment.
Post Overdose Engagement Team
The goal of the Post Overdose Engagement Team (POET) is to connect people who have experienced an overdose to substance use treatment. They work to engage people experiencing homelessness within 72 hours to prevent future overdoses.
Citywide street teams
DPH also partners with other departments to provide a network of crisis services. Learn more about citywide street teams.
When to call 911 or 311
Use 911 for medical emergencies, such as a substance use or mental health crisis. Call 311 to request services or receive information on topics including encampments or syringes and hazardous waste. Learn more about the 911 and 311 services.