Building Power on "Mass&Cass": A Community-Centered Approach to Addressing Health Resource Gaps for Persons Experiencing Homelessness in Boston, MA, 2021

Am J Public Health. 2024 Sep;114(9):870-873. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2024.307713. Epub 2024 Jun 20.

Abstract

In November 2021, two grassroots organizations in Boston, Massachusetts-a housing and health justice organization and a student-led nonprofit-established an initiative to provide persons experiencing homelessness (PEH) near the Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard ("Mass&Cass") intersection in Boston with access to free COVID-19 education and other wrap-around services. They partnered with hospitals, public health organizations, and advocacy groups to make this happen. This community-driven initiative serves as a model for how to enact a sustainable pipeline for PEH to receive health resources and information, with the voices of those directly impacted at the center. (Am J Public Health. 2024;114(9):870-873. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2024.307713).

MeSH terms

  • Boston
  • COVID-19* / epidemiology
  • COVID-19* / prevention & control
  • Health Resources
  • Humans
  • Ill-Housed Persons*
  • SARS-CoV-2