The importance of integrating a reflexive mapping exercise of services and organisations working with people experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless into education

Introduction: The Scottish Oral Health and Psycho-social well-being programme, Smile4life, identified there is a lack of knowledge of the health and social services available, including referral pathways, for those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. The Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014 aims integrate health and social care in Scotland to meet the needs of vulnerable populations. However, there is still a clear need to create coordinated access to information and services for users and healthcare professionals. The Reflective Mapping Exercise (RME) aims to increase the communication and integration of services for practitioners. This project forms a framework to map services identifying geographic distribution, types of support and how they relate to deprivation levels.

Methods: The first RME was carried out in Dundee and Aberdeen and is now being replicated in Edinburgh, and Glasgow. The methodology is participatory including online search, telephone calls and, where it is possible, informal visits and event consultation. This will be related to deprivation.

Results: The mapping in Glasgow will cover eight areas including: housing support; Information, Advice and Advocacy; food assistance; Furniture assistance; Health and Psycho-social wellbeing support; Employment and Education and Training. From the Mapping in Dundee and Aberdeen it was observed a lack of services are allocated in the most deprived areas, the majority seek to address crisis period’s, and little are aimed towards early intervention/prevention and sustainable tenancy.

Conclusions: The mapping process identified the need to take a prophylactic approach and provide services not only as a reactionary response, while also aiming to create a more equitable distribution of services. The RME helps to provide a framework which simplifies communication and integration of health and social care services amongst practitioners and vulnerable services users. The knowledge of its importance and use relies on educating practitioners through public health campaigns and integration into dental education.