Providence Swedish invests in health care for Seattle’s unhoused seniors and veterans

In Seattle, Providence Swedish’s work with a nurse navigator program helps provide whole-person care for formerly unhoused seniors and veterans at Blake House, a 112-unit supportive housing development in the city’s First Hill neighborhood.    
 
Providence Swedish Nurse Navigator Peepong Thao, RN, cares for Blake House’s 112 residents in a host of ways, including providing on-site support for self-management of chronic conditions; making assessments; coordinating with a case manager for specialty care; working with a housing manager to make sure residents are showing up for appointments; organizing monthly health information talks; and much more.   
 
Thao regularly monitors residents' health, promptly addressing any emerging issues which, for many, helps prevent hospital readmission. Thao also works with clinicians at Providence Swedish’s Family Medicine - First Hill Residency Program and Swedish Geriatric Medicine Fellowship to connect Blake House residents with primary and specialty care, and community education.   
 
Thao is passionately committed to community nursing and the mission of caring for Seattle’s seniors and veterans, including providing them with the opportunity to live in a safe, healthy and supportive community. At Blake House, Thao and Providence Swedish are ensuring that residents—many of whom have too often been underserved—receive the care they need, when they need it.