Operation Safety Net (OSN) is a
Street Medicine Street Medicine Institute was formed in 2008 by Dr. Jim Withers. The term Street Medicine, in this context, was coined by Dr. Jim Withers who has been one of the leaders in the movement. His program, Operation Safety Net in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvani ...
program in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and one of the nation's first full-time street-based delivery medical systems. OSN was founded in 1992
when Dr. Jim Withers and Mike Sallows began to make field visits to the homeless in Pittsburgh.
[Malloy, Michael G]
“Pittsburgh’s Operation Safety Net Is Making a Difference to the Underserved,”
''AAMC Reporter'', March, 2003. In time, other formerly
homeless
Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are:
* living on the streets, also kn ...
outreach workers and medical volunteers joined the effort. In 1993, OSN became a
nonprofit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
organization under the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System with Linda Sheets as the program administrator.
Operation Safety Net visits the homeless through walking teams medical outreach staff.
Most of OSN's work force are volunteers. Withers was one of the ten recipients out of the 463 nominees of the $120,000 by the Robert Wood Johnson Community Health Leadership Program in 2002 and $105,000 of which was allocated to OSN.
[Srikameswaran, Anita]
“‘Street doc’ honored for work with homeless,”
''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', Thursday, August 15, 2002.
References
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External links
Operation Safety NetA Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania street medicine program
Homelessness charities
Health charities in the United States
Organizations based in Pittsburgh
Medical and health organizations based in Pennsylvania