John Muir Health supports the Philip Dorn Respite Center is a 24-bed respite program, the only one of its kind in Contra Costa County. The Respite Center is located next door to the County Homeless Shelter in Concord. It was developed in cooperation with local hospitals, the Contra Costa County Health Services Homeless Program and the Healthcare for the Homeless program. The program provides recuperative care to medically fragile homeless adult individuals who are discharging from hospitals and have no permanent residence.
I arrived at the Respite Center from the John Muir Health Concord campus during my recovery from a fall from a second story building where I broke my legs severely. I was using a walker to get around and had rods connected to my legs.
The Respite Center provided me with a connection to Basic Adult Care services at Contra Costa Regional Medical Center, referrals to Mental Health Care because of my diagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder, a referral and transportation provided for primary care physician, physical therapy, mental health appointments, and obtaining my medications. The Respite Center also assisted in helping me accessing resources such as Social Security, an identification card, and housing.
When I left the Respite Center I had regained my mobility and was managing all of my medical and mental health follow ups on my own.