St. Anthony Shrine clinic offers homeless women healing from the trauma of life on the street
Kelly was all smiles when she greeted Mary Ann Ponti in the lobby of the YMCA in Boston and brought her up to her two-room apartment as she cradled her 4-month-old son in her arms.
The state Department of Children and Families had taken William from her after he was born because she had been using drugs until Ponti gave her a pregnancy test at the women’s clinic at St. Anthony Shine, where Ponti is director of outreach programs. But after three months, she finally got William back.
“Today, I’m 7 months clean, and I got my son back,” said Kelly when her boy was back in her arms Thursday. Kelly asked that her last name be withheld. “I’m grateful for Mary Ann and the clinic being in my life. If I hadn’t found out I was pregnant, I’d be on the street, getting high right now.”
For nearly five years, the shrine’s women’s clinic has provided free medical care and drug and alcohol counseling, an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on and, on occasions such as this, cheerleaders to celebrate homeless and formerly homeless women’s triumphs.
“It’s amazing, right?” Ponti told Kelly, handing her a bag full of gifts, including blankets, diapers, pacifiers and gift cards to Stop & Shop. “It’s because of all your hard work.”
Tucked in a corner of the shrine, next to its chapel in Downtown Crossing, the clinic, thanks to architect David Manfredi, underwent a complete renovation, beginning with a door that locks, in place of the curtain that once served as its entrance. Safety is paramount because most clients have been beaten, raped or trafficked, Ponti said. A female security guard stays outside, as well, to make sure that no men enter.
The renovation also included a room with an examination table, a small office where Ponti meets with clients and two bathrooms, including one with a shower — one of the few available to women living on Boston’s streets.
In addition to Ponti, a licensed drug and alcohol counselor, the clinic is staffed by a doctor, a physician assistant, a nurse and a nurse practitioner — all women from the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program.
But the staff doesn’t wait for women to come to them. At 7:30 every Tuesday and Wednesday morning, an hour before the clinic opens, Ponti and another staff member go to Boston Common, Chinatown, Downtown Crossing and alleyways in between, inviting women to the clinic, where coffee, snacks, fresh clothes and a quiet lounge where they can nap await.
Ponti found Kelly sleeping in a doorway on one of the streets off Boston Common in 2019. She had been homeless since her mother died in 2015, Kelly said, and she hadn’t been to a doctor in years.
“When I first came to the clinic, I thought it was a nice place,” she said. “It was clean, the people were nice, and the care they have to offer is great.”
The two kept in regular touch, and when Kelly’s pregnancy test came back positive, Ponti arranged for her to stay at the Barbara McInnis House, a short-term medical respite place for homeless people and, afterward, Boston Medical Center’s Project Respect, a program for pregnant women with substance use disorder and their newborns. As part of her recovery, Kelly, 41, is still in that program and found housing at the Y through the state Department of Transitional Assistance.
“A lot of what we do is just take time to get to know women and build trust,” said Physician Assistant Jennifer Nunes.
Nunes recalled repeatedly urging one woman to get her COVID-19 vaccination.
“Initially, she would say, ‘Every time you ask me, I’m going to say no,’” Nunes said. “So I would say, ‘OK. But I’m going to keep asking.’”
And then this Wednesday, the woman came into the clinic, flagged her down and said, “I got it!”
“I said, ‘Got what?’ And then she whipped out her vaccination card,” Nunes said. “I told her, ‘I’m so glad you’re protected. Congratulations, I’m so proud of you!”
Big and small donations are welcome to help St. Anthony Shrine continue to hold up those who need it most in the city. Go to stanthonyshrine.org for more and to read about tonight’s fundraising dinner.
from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/31iUL81
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