Thunder Bay street nurse shares what she sees on the job
"If we were all just a little bit more willing to help one another everybody would be doing better."
Five nights a week a refurbished ambulance is found in the Victoriaville area of Thunder Bay. They're there to do harm reduction and sexual health services. Things like sexually transmitted infection and anonymous HIV testing, and handing out condoms, clean needles, inhalation and naloxone kits.
But they do much more than that.
"That's not people's top priority," said Shelley Aretz, Public Health Nurse for Thunder Bay District Health Unit. She's been working as street nurse as part of the sexual health unit for a year.
The ambulance is always busy. People often come by with wounds that need treatment, or help with chronic conditions like diabetes or high blood pressure.
"People who just don't have access to the care they need for those things," said Aretz.
They do the best with what they have, treating the wounds with gauze and saline solution but sometimes they need more involved care like prescription dressings. It can be hard to keep wounds clean when you're living on the streets and people often don't want to go to a walk-in clinic or the hospital for treatment for many reasons. They're unable to wait for long periods of times, or they don't have transportation to get there. Aretz said sometimes they need to tell people to go when they need more treatment than they can give.
"It's something we see all the time," said Aretz.
The people coming to the ambulance are people suffering from poverty who are homeless or marginally housed. Often they are living out of a backpack making it hard for them to carry around hygiene supplies.
A local dentist donated a couple hundred toothbrushes to the ambulance, which has been a popular item. People also come looking for things like soap and feminine hygiene products. Because their a sexual health and harm reduction program they rely on denotation for many hygiene items don't always have them items in stock.
"The thing that strikes me is just the needs people have being so fundamental," said Aretz. "The things that I take for granted everyday that people just don't have food and shelter and hygiene."
Pads are a popular item and many women have to make due without.
One night Aretz was helping a few women and their children who came to the ambulance looking toothbrushes when another woman came along looking for pads. They were out, meaning she would have to make due or find another agencies who had some.
But the other women looked through their bags and gave her the pads they had.
"Those are the sorts of things that stick with me, that people lookout for each other" said Aretz.
This isn't uncommon.
Aretz sees this kind of sacrifice all the time while she's street nursing. People give up their meals for people who missed the cut off time for dinner at Shelter House, or aren't allowed in other will bring food out for them. She's even had people bring her and the other nurses soup from the Dew Drop Inn, sacrificing their meal for the night.
"It's really touching," said Aretz.
Some people come to the ambulance get what they need and go, but other like to share their stories. Aretz said they have regulars and people she's gotten to know.
"It's a privilege to hear those things," said Aretz. "I just think people have a lot of strength and resilience to just keep going through their day when they've lived through what they have."
Being a harm reduction service Aretz said people often turn to substances because of trauma they've experienced. They're hurting emotionally as much as physically. Even though they aren't a mental health service, the doors are open for those who want to share.
"Their lives are complicated and people are often doing the best they can with the hand they've been dealt," said Aretz. "If we were all just a little bit more willing to help one another everybody would be doing better."