Scott Cronkwright struggled with addiction and homelessness for decades.
Now, he works to help people like him get the help they need so they can get off the streets and out of the health-care system.
Cronkwright’s story isn’t unique in Niagara, where nearly every day patients come to Niagara Health for care, with nowhere to go when they get better.
“We have homeless patients who are very sick, with complex needs that are further complicated by a lack of housing,” said Breanna Elliotson, a Niagara Health emergency department (ED) social worker. “After we care for them and discharge them, often those same patients end up back in the ED due to their complex social problems.”