The Tucson community’s first medical respite center for the homeless will soon be accepting patients.
Casa de Respiro is located at the Center of Opportunity Campus, 4550 S. Palo Verde Road, and will provide post-hospital services to persons experiencing homelessness who are injured or ill and have no place to recover.
The program includes a partnership with El Rio Health Center, Catholic Community Services, and the HSLopez Family Foundation.
“It’s finally happening,” said Elena Dwyre, CEO of CCS. “This is a place where people can heal and receive additional services, so when they are well enough to leave, they can move into more stable housing.”
The project has been in the works since 2015 and the center was dedicated by Bishop Edward Weisenburger last month.
The 15,000-square-foot facility includes housing for 10 women and 36 men in a quad room setting and two private rooms for palliative or private care. The common areas include small group therapy spaces, large activity areas, dining areas, outside space, a serving kitchen, and an interfaith chapel/quiet room for worship services and meetings.
The center will also have a pet play area to accommodate patients’ pets.
It is estimated that Tucson’s new Medical Respite Center will serve more than 1,500 people a year.
The common areas at the new Casa de Respiro include small group therapy spaces, large activity areas, dining areas, outside space, a serving kitchen, and an interfaith chapel/quiet room for worship services and meetings.
Similar programs in other states have helped reduce emergency room visits by 40%, days of in-patient care by 70%, and hospital readmissions.
“It’s really exciting to contemplate the impact this center will have and the lives it will save and change,” said Scott Kim, program director for Casa de Respiro. “We’re already getting calls from hospitals asking about it.”
Funds for the $7.9 million facility were raised from more than 300 individual donors, foundations and partners such as the Diane & Bruce Halle Foundation, the H.S. Lopez Family Foundation, Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, the Chouinard Charitable Trust, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Arizona, St. Joseph Catholic Healthcare Endowment Fund, Connie Hillman Foundation, Southwest Catholic Health Network, Ginny L. Clements and Tom Rogers, O’Rielly Automotive Foundation, Del E. Webb Foundation, Jim and Vicki Click, William and Mary Ross Foundation, Margaret E. Mooney Foundation, PetSmart Charities, Union Pacific, Raskob Foundation, and the Sundt Foundation.
“It is wonderful to see the collaboration between Catholic Community Services, which will manage the respite facility, and its next-door neighbor, El Rio Health Center, as the medical provider for post-hospitalization care for people requiring respite services,” said Jean Kalbacher, CEO of UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Arizona. “Also vital are the wraparound services from CCS partners like Gospel Rescue Mission, which will provide the meals for the facility, Pima County Workforce Program, the SOBER Project, Tucson Veterans Serving Veterans, La Frontera and many more groups who want to see this population thrive.”
Additional support is now being sought for furnishings, program materials and start-up operations. Donations can be made at ccs-soaz.org/donate/form.
Casa de Respiro is expected to start accepting patients this spring.
