TELUS program reduces communication and technology barriers for people experiencing homelessness amid COVID-19
By Jasmine Salazar
“Not having an address or cellphone was a barrier for me. It was hard coordinating with everybody, especially for interviews and meetings.”
The rapidly changing COVID-19 pandemic forced many organizations nation-wide to develop innovative digital solutions to continue their service delivery.
As information around the infectious disease continued to evolve, organizations had to pivot as quickly—and safely—as possible to ensure minimal service disruption. This resulted in a shift from in-person services to telecommunications in effort to maintain operations amid government physical distancing requirements.
People with direct access to technology and Internet could stay connected. However, virtual services exacerbated pre-existing disparities in digital access for those without it, further compounding communication barriers for populations including people experiencing homelessness.
Brent is among those who lacked the technology necessary to access these services remotely as he had been experiencing unsheltered homelessness. The 50-year-old explains he lost his home just before the pandemic hit due to his landlord increasing the monthly rent, and he ended up getting evicted. He didn’t have a cellphone at that time, and admits that maintaining communications without one was challenging and was worsened by the pandemic.
“Not having an address or cellphone was a barrier for me,” he says. “It was hard coordinating with everybody, especially for interviews and meetings.”
Brent needed to sustain communications—specifically with his doctor as he had a medical condition. This prompted a temporary solution prior to the pandemic: Brent was permitted to direct phone calls to the office of a local not-for-profit where it was arranged that they could take his messages. Eventually, the agency had temporarily shut down its in-person operations and reduced their hours due to COVID-19, so Brent was unable to retrieve those voicemails as frequently.
“Half of the messages that were left for me were three or four days old,” recalls Brent.
Some of those voicemails were from his doctor, prospective landlords, housing workers and other social supports. Some of these messages were essential in getting him permanently housed.
Brent explains his health was deteriorating and his medical condition made him a high risk of severe illness from COVID-19. His doctors were advising to not sleep outside anymore.
“The doctors and specialists decided that they didn’t want me outside, because I was having medical issues,” says Brent. “I couldn’t live like that anymore.”
A solution was needed—and fast.
The solution
At this time, TELUS was being approached by their clients for assistance in navigating the communication challenges brought forward by the pandemic. It had been identified that there was an alarming number of people without access to a phone, Internet or other means of technology resulting in an urgent need to bridge those digital divides to ensure Canadians could maintain those vital connections.
“We were being approached by organizations from across the country with concerns on how they would be able to stay in touch with their patients and/or the marginalized individuals they support,” explains Nimtaz Kanji, Director of Community Investments and Social Purpose Programs at TELUS. “Their offices were being shut down and they couldn’t meet face-to-face with their clients. It was a common trend among a lot of the inquiries we were getting at that time, so we started the COVID-19 Emergency Response program.”
The temporary COVID-19 Emergency Response program was formed to support community members, such as isolated seniors and people experiencing homelessness, with a necessary lifeline to continue communications with health and social support services during the pandemic. The program provided recipients with cellphone devices and free plans with unlimited talk and text, and 3GB of data.
The program was an extension of an existing TELUS initiative called the Mobility for Good® program, explains Kanji, which equips youth aging out of foster care with a free mobile phone and plan for two years to help them gain their independence and stay connected.
Kanji reveals that 325 organizations across the country were supported through the COVID-19 Emergency Response program. A total of 14,000 cellphones, tablets and plans valued at $16 million dollars were donated, she says.
“The pandemic really emphasized the role that communications and technology has on our day-to-day lives—whether it was kids who had to start learning from home or marginalized individuals or those experiencing homelessness who all of a sudden could no longer access face-to-face services and supports,” she says. “In all of these cases—including for those who are working from home—technology plays an essential role in all of our lives.”
In Edmonton, the donated cellphones and plans were provided to Housing First teams to give to people experiencing homelessness who were working towards securing housing.
“Housing—having a roof on my head—gives me peace of mind. I don’t have to think about where I’m going to sleep or what I’m going to do.”
A place to call home
It had been identified that Brent had lost contact for a prolonged period during the pandemic. He was no longer checking in with the aforementioned local non-profit for messages and outreach workers were not able to locate him in the community. Brent’s file had revealed he had not been in contact for over 90 days.
For unsheltered people experiencing homelessness, this is not uncommon. People sleeping outside are frequently on the move. Additional reasons that a person may lose contact could be due to transportation issues, safety, temporarily staying with a friend or family member, or resolved their housing situation on their own.
Brent made contact again after visiting Tipinawâw—a temporary overnight shelter space that had been activated by sector partners to support people experiencing homelessness during the winter months— and it was discovered that he was still experiencing unsheltered homelessness.
To minimize the risk of losing contact with Brent again, he was given a cellphone to help him reconnect and maintain those necessary conversations to get permanently housed.
Denise Walton, Housing Outreach Worker at Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society who had been working with Brent to secure housing, confirms that the cellphone enabled Brent to maintain regular contact, and in turn helped him keep track of and attend the necessary appointments/meetings to get him housed.
“It was so easy to connect with him once he got a cellphone,” says Walton. “Having a reliable form of communication made contact easy with Brent.”
That regular communication resulted in Brent securing a home in just six days.
“I was surprised at how fast it happened. I wasn’t expecting it,” reflects Brent. “Everything was boom, boom, boom.”
Brent has been housed since February 2021. He lives in a one-bedroom apartment in a quiet neighbourhood.
Securing a home has been a relief, says Brent, who has been able to focus on his health.
“Housing—having a roof on my head—gives me peace of mind. I don’t have to think about where I’m going to sleep or what I’m going to do,” says Brent.
Brent is a current participant of the Nikihk Housing First program at Bent Arrow Traditional Housing Society, one of 37 agencies funded by Homeward Trust that provide Housing First programs in Edmonton. The program embraces the principle of Housing First—Housing First involves moving people who experience homelessness into independent and permanent housing as quickly as possible, with no preconditions, and then providing them with additional supports and services to maintain that housing—and is designed to provide supports and services that fosters stability and enables participants to maintain their home.
Brent is one of 13,782 Edmontonians housed through Housing First and related programs since 2009 (as of Jan. 4, 2022).
“I’m thankful for the people who helped me get to where I am today.”
About TELUS Connecting for Good
TELUS is leveraging world-leading technology to create meaningful change, bridge digital divides and ensure equal access to technology for Canadians in need through their Connecting For Good programs. The COVID-19 Emergency Response program is an extension of the TELUS Mobility for Good program, which is available to 20,000 youth aging out of foster care, enabling them to gain their independence and stay connected with a free mobile phone and data plan for two years. The program empowers vulnerable youth with a vital lifeline to the people, information, and opportunities that matter most. The program also supports low-income seniors with getting connected, providing them with access to a discounted smartphone and low-cost plan.
In addition to Mobility for Good, other programs include:
- Internet for Good, offering high speed broadband internet to qualified low-income families, youth leaving foster care, and in-need people with disabilities, starting at $9.95 per month.
- Health for Good, providing access to primary and mental health care via TELUS mobile health clinics, directly to people in need living on the streets in urban centres across Canada.
- Tech for Good, empowering differently abled Canadians facing challenges using smartphones and tablets with customized training and support to help them live more independently
