Addicts in recovery ‘have no place to go’ in Cork: Stats on homeless deaths prompt call for more supports

Figures released this week, the most up-to-date available, have revealed that there were more than a dozen deaths among homeless people in Cork during 2021.

The figures have prompted Caitríona Twomey, of Cork Penny Dinners, to say that additional supports are needed for homeless people so they do not have to go from treatment centres back to living on the street.

A Health Research Board (HRB) report shows that, nationally, there were 128 deaths among people known to be homeless at the time of death in 2021 — with over 10% of these occurring in Cork.

The figures for Cork decreased from 20 in 2020 to 13 in 2021. From 2019 to 2021, 45 homeless people died in the South-West region, made up of Cork and Kerry.

Nationally, most deaths during the three-year period occurred either in specific accommodation for people who were homeless (41%) or in a public place or building (33%). Two in three people were alone at the time of their death.

Of those who died, 89% had a recorded history of substance use, with the number of individuals with more than five drugs implicated in their death increased from 16% in 2019 to 25% in 2021.

In 2021, 93% of fatalities among those who were homeless were under 60 years old, compared to 12.6% of deaths of non-homeless people.

The board said the report illustrates the risk of premature mortality associated with homelessness.

Speaking to The Echo, Ms Twomey said: “We need treatment centres.

“But then we need step-down houses for six to 12 months to get people ready to live on their own. Then we need a facility where they can stay while they look for a home. We’ve often met people who have just come out of a treatment centre, and that night they’re on the street,” she said.

“Living on the streets can hinder their recovery. It’s very hard to stay clean, but a lot of people have no place to go when they come out. The fear of the streets starts all over again. People are worried about what’s going to happen to them — are they going to get beaten, attacked, and their stuff stolen, or raped?

“The Government needs to work with the agencies who see what’s happening on the ground, because we don’t want to lose anybody else.

“There’s so many affected by addiction, and they’re getting younger and younger.

“It could be anybody’s young person dying on the street, because addiction affects all walks of life. Younger people often start dealing to feed their habit, which makes it harder for them to get out of the whole cycle.

“It’s appalling that so many people are dying, slipping through the net.

“There should be services in place immediately whenever an addict comes forward looking for support.

“The gaps in the support system have now become big gaping holes, and the holes are easier for people to fall through now because they’ve become so big.”

Paul Sheehan, of Cork Simon, told The Echo that the report “really reflects the layers of trauma people in homelessness have to experience”.

“Not every homeless person is on drugs, but those that are often have very complex needs, and that’s what we have always seen in Cork Simon — people coming from disadvantage, many of them it seems as though they were born to be pushed into homelessness,” he said.

“Poor physical or mental health, drug use, and often polydrug use. When you’re on the streets or stuck in emergency accommodation, the ability to address them is very limited.

“It’s next to impossible to try and stay off drugs — all your energy is going into where you’re going to sleep that night, where your next meal will come from, how you’re going to get through the day.”