We provide a range of services which are linked with homelessness or can impact on people who have experienced homelessness.
Neuropsychological Assessment
Around 50% of the homeless population have sustained a traumatic brain injury; many before becoming homeless. Homeless people are also more likely to sustain a serious head injury compared to the general population. When we add to this high prevalence rates of learning disability, alcohol-related brain damage, and developmental neurological impairments due to trauma and social exclusion, we see a picture of at least 70% of the homeless population experiencing unmet neuropsychological needs.
We conduct holistic neuropsychological assessments, providing a picture of a person’s cognitive functioning in the context of their own life. We want to help ensure a person has a tailored support package that captures the extent of their strengths and weaknesses, in order to give best chance of a healthier, happier future.
Reflective Practice
These sessions may form one part of the support systems for people who work in this area. In order for them to work well, individuals must have access to:
- Good, formal, structured supervision
- Support to access existing provisions (e.g. mental health services, addiction services)
- Positive culture within the work environment
These sessions are intended to be an addition to those three basic needs, not a replacement for them. The reflective sessions will not compensate for negative experiences in the workplace, but help people to achieve their best possible wellbeing in work.
Sessions have a maximum of 10 attendees, and are facilitated by up to two members of NeuroTriage. They incorporate a range of facilitated discussion tasks, which take individual, small group, and whole group format. Typical topics include: –
- the interaction between personal and professional values
- challenges and joys in this work setting
- affecting change in organisations
- feeling strong in work and seeking support during struggles
- developing positive teamwork.
As the sessions develop, they will work towards a co-constructed approach where attendees are able to direct topics, share facilitation, and develop skills in group work and leadership.
Consultation
Working homelessness can be difficult, and the people who access homeless services can often have very complex, long-standing struggles. Consultation can help ‘share the load’ by working together to consider a person’s neuropsychological, emotional, spiritual, and social needs. This can be done as a group, or 1:1 with individual staff members, accommodation providers, and others who may benefit from a neuropsychological perspective on a person’s struggles, with the constant goal of helping move towards a more cohesive and compassionate approach to care.
Training
We deliver training to service providers on a range of areas with key sessions in: –
- Trauma and the brain
- Anger and the brain
- Neuropsychology and homelessness
- Managing grief and loss
- Creating incident de-briefs
- Preventing eviction
MCA
We are working up a campaign space addressing the urgent need for addiction to be accepted as an impairment of the brain under the MCA. We’ll have more on this as we move forward.