Providing Trauma-Informed Care in Homeless Response

This course will continue to help me, our clients and our organization. In the midst of taking this course I got triggered by a client who, I think now, after taking this course, responded by "fighting" when I explained why we couldn't provide him with a lunch. He hadn't reserved one in time and we had distributed all that we have. Instead of taking responsibility for not doing his part, he "attacked" by saying he no longer needed our services and that we aren't helping him anyway (because there is no evidence for him that the homeless verifications/documentation we are doing is going to end up in housing). I responded by telling him it was he who didn't follow the rules to reserve a meal and to stop attacking me/us when he gets mad. Later, I thought about it and realized he is having trust issues related to our documentation. He may have been let down by other institutions. So, I met with him and went over his documentation. We have documented over 1000 homeless nights, but he had a year long break - 568 nights - then was in an apartment for one year (staying with someone). Then back on the streets and now we have over 560 more nights. He has chronicity, but no verification of disability. We are working on that. He wouldn't participate in our street medicine program. He is participating in MetroCare (mental health help) now. He feels like he has over 1000 homeless nights and should already be housed. We told him we can't control the speed. We are doing what we can - documenting, getting his critical documents, helping him get to mental healthcare visits and bringing food to him when he reserves meals on time. Meeting with him to show him his case reassured him and he shared some things we didn't know that help us to understand him better. I am soooo thankful for this training!