The group spent time at Health E1 Homeless Medical Centre, one of the Trust's specialist GP surgeries for people experiencing homelessness. This was a fitting setting, given the visitors' experience of working with underserved communities in Utrecht.
Practice Manager, Mohammed Almahfuz, facilitated the visit, which gave Dutch healthcare professionals an insight into how care is delivered in NHS settings.
The session opened with a welcome from Laura Austin Croft, Director of Population Health. She explained how public health expertise helps NHS services reduce inequalities, including those affecting people experiencing homelessness. This was followed by a presentation from Public Health Registrar Fred Thomas, who shared findings from a recent mortality review across the Trust's three homeless practices. He highlighted the key themes and the improvement actions now being put in place.
Padma Wignesvaran, Clinical Lead at The Greenhouse Practice, another ELFT GP surgery for people experiencing homelessness, described the local context, how primary care services within ELFT are organised, and the complex needs of service users. Colleagues from the Rough Sleepers Mental Health Project (RAMHP), including Team Manager Hilary Neal and Consultant Psychiatrist Dave Baillie, shared further insight into delivering mental healthcare to people who are sleeping rough, including in non-clinical and street-based settings.
Laura Austin Croft said: "It was a real pleasure to welcome our colleagues from Utrecht. The team were so engaged throughout, asking insightful questions and sharing how they approach things in the Netherlands."
"Comparing our two systems side by side was genuinely valuable, and there's a lot we can learn from one another. My thanks go to Mohammed Almahfuz for facilitating the visit, and to Fred Thomas, Padma Wignesvaran, Hilary Neal and Dave Baillie for giving their time to prepare and share their work so generously."
DetraCare is an international agency that organises specialised study tours, seminars, and exchange programmes for healthcare professionals.