Nursing care for homeless people: a literature review

Homeless people are exposed to greater health problems due to the social health vulnerability they have. These people have access barriers and low affiliation to the health care system, which makes it difficult to provide care. The objective of this study is to analyze the nursing care provided to homeless people worldwide. A literature review was carried out in Web of Science, Scopus, EBSCO, CINAHL and SciELO using the following filtering criteria: articles from the last 5 years, Spanish, English or Portuguese language, and full text. The search expressions [Nursing care AND Homeless persons], [Nursing care AND Homeless persons NOT Hospitalization] were used. 24 articles were selected in which health promotion, prevention and education care, clinical care, mental health and addiction care, rehabilitation, palliative care and dignified death were identified. Care was delivered by establishing a therapeutic relationship and encouraging active and integrated participation with the multidisciplinary team, by providing clinical care in fixed and mobile locations, and by carrying out network and administrative management actions in which the nursing professional promoted access to health care. In conclusion, while nursing care is currently provided worldwide that adapts to the context and needs of homeless people, it is still necessary to prioritize efforts to organize new ways of caring for this population and include them in the health system.