INN Between provides hospice care for homeless

Friday, Dec. 11, 2015

SALT LAKE CITY — Homeless, frail and dying – the INN Between was created to provide individuals in this situation with volunteer professional hospice care that offers them dignity in their last days.

Ina Rodriguez is a resident at the INN Between; she currently also is receiving chemotherapy for breast cancer at the Huntsman Cancer Institute.

“I love it here,” Rodriguez said. “It’s a home away from home.”

Ben Jones, who became a resident at INN Between after being hospitalized for stage 4 liver failure, also holds the facility in high regard. 

“I was an alcoholic; I’ve been homeless for more than four years,” he said. “The INN Between is a godsend.” 

Jones hopes his liver will heal enough so he can be placed on the liver transplant list. “That’s my goal,” he said. “The hospice nurse that comes here helps my self-esteem.” 

Staying warm on the street in the winter is difficult, Jones said; to combat the bitter cold, he and his friends would use the three sleeping bag system by putting down a tarp, then a sleeping bag, wrap up in a sleeping bag and put another sleeping bag over them, and sleep close together. 

“We would try to find happiness and camaraderie in our misery,” Jones said, adding that $20 to a homeless person is like having $1,000. “Our first priority on the street is eating.” 

The INN Between is the only temporary housing option in the Salt Lake area where terminally ill homeless individuals can receive volunteer professional hospice care. “Sometimes residents will come here for short-term care from complications from a surgery, pneumonia or frostbite, but our focus is end-of-life care,” said Kim Correa, INN Between executive director. 

Every year about 50 people die on the streets of Salt Lake City; the INN Between bridges the gap so that no one has to die alone, Correa said.

A group of individuals from the medical and interfaith communities worked for four years to launch a hospice for the homeless in Salt Lake City but “it wasn’t until last November, when we found the vacant convent and Guadalupe school building on Goshen Street, that the program began to move from concept to reality,” Correa said. 

INN Between leases the buildings from the Diocese of Salt Lake City, which supports the ministry of the homeless hospice. “We are cognizant of the neighbors surrounding the INN Between, and Kim has done a good job handling that,” said Deacon George Reade, chancellor. “We would like to see it continue as long as it stays within the confines of the zoning requirements.”

The facility met the city’s zoning requirements when it opened in August, but when it asked to expand it was faced with a zoning matter with the Salt Lake City Council. The question was resolved at a Dec. 1 meeting; the decision allows INN Between to continue to operate as temporary housing for people with medical issues. 

“We only have 12 bedrooms in the old convent,” said Correa. “This decision by the City Council allows us to pursue using the school building for residents in order to care for the number of terminally ill homeless in our community.”

The INN Between also cares for residents by trying to reconnect them with their family members; if they have a support network that can step up, especially at the end of life, “we will make those connections or arrangements for the residents,” Correa said. “It isn’t usually possible because homeless people are often estranged from family members for various reasons.”

The INN Between plans to hold a memorial service for everybody who dies there and puts a plaque with their name in the memorial garden.

The INN Between has experienced four residents’ deaths and has provided two memorial services, one for Casey Manning, the other for Thomas Halliburton. Manning grew up across the street from the INN Between as a young boy, said Correa.

When St. Mark’s Hospital referred Manning to the INN Between, they said Manning wouldn’t leave his dog, and the hospital had allowed the dog to sleep in the bed with him, Correa said. 

“If it was good enough for them, it was good enough for us,” Correa said, as her voice began to choke. “So we let the dog, Kola, come with him, and she stayed by his side the whole time. Casey was only with us a week before he died of cancer in the hospital, but he was really happy because he felt like he had come home.” 

“One of my worst fears was that he would die alone on the street and we would never know,” said Amie Putnam, Manning’s sister. “When he came [to the INN Between], it meant the world to me; I knew he would be safe, have food and shelter. He finally found peace; he felt completely at home.”