A wife and her husband visited Chicago to celebrate a milestone of her completing the second trimester of pregnancy. What was supposed to be a daylong visit of food and fun became something entirely different when the wife suffered food poisoning.
That one-day stay in the city ended up being a lot longer because she eventually needed a C-section for her 26-week-old fetus. And her husband needed temporary housing for what ended up being a three-month stay for her care and recovery.
It’s a scenario many families have to contend with, thanks to the unpredictable nature of healthcare, where a simple medical procedure can be anything but, resulting in a prolonged stay. And family members are left to scramble for a short-term housing solution, which includes expensive hotel rooms and costly short-term rentals.
Thankfully, the husband secured accommodations with the Illinois Medical District Guest House.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]This facility provides safe and affordable temporary housing for patients and their families who must stay in Chicago for medical treatment. [/perfectpullquote]
The Guest House was founded in 1999 by Jane Reich, and when it opened its doors in 2005, the husband above and his wife were its first guests. Since then, the Guest House, located on the University of Illinois at Chicago campus, has assisted thousands, including military veterans receiving treatment through Rush’s Road Home Program.
“We’ve probably helped over 5,500 families in that amount of time and delivered 80,000 nights of service,” said Guest House Executive Director Adam Helman.
A key aspect of Guest House’s mission is inclusivity.
“Between 40 and 50% of the families that we support are low income,” said Helman, emphasizing that no family is turned away for financial reasons.
He said that despite the financial challenges many families face, the Guest House maintains a steadfast commitment to supporting those in need.
Addressing the Overlooked in Healthcare Equity
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines healthcare equity as the state where every human being, regardless of race or socioeconomic standing, has a fair and just opportunity “to attain their highest level of health.”
It’s an ideal far from the actual norm as people from certain racial and ethnic groups in the U.S. — economically and socially disadvantaged — don’t receive the proper treatment they are entitled to.
Affordable, viable housing during treatment, the kind that the Guest House provides, should be included in this conversation, says Dionne Nicole Smith, Guest House’s director of development.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”Nobody talks about temporary lodging when you talk about how you are going to tackle getting the care you need,” Smith said, “I always say the Guest House tackles that unknown subject within healthcare equity.”[/perfectpullquote]
In the 24 years the Guest House has existed, the organization has had a global impact on who it has been able to service, reaching people from Alaska to South Africa and from Siberia to Puerto Rico.
But the nearly 50 rooms it offers aren’t just for families from outside of the area. Breaking barriers to accessible healthcare, organizational officials say, begins at home.
Guest House Director of Business Operations Joanie Vernasco draws attention to the challenges many in the Chicagoland area face in accessing healthcare services.
“Just because you live in a Chicago zip code doesn’t mean getting to these hospitals is easy,” Vernasco said. “The organization’s commitment to removing barriers ensures that individuals, like a young parent with a baby in the NICU, can focus on the essential care without the added stress of expensive accommodations.”
At the onset of the pandemic, when the outside world was locked down, and hospitals prioritized cancer patients and COVID-19-infected individuals, the Guest House opened its doors to essential medical staff, especially those brought in to provide relief to overburdened doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists at nearby hospitals.
It allowed those workers the ability to perform their jobs and keep from having to commute back home, putting their loved ones at unnecessary risk.
If those workers had to work a double shift, they had a place to stay instead of “driving back to the suburbs and exposing their families,” said Vernasco. Or, she added, those workers stayed at the Guest House to avoid exposing their newborn children or immunocompromised relatives at home.
Their service during the pandemic hit another healthcare equity touchpoint: Empowering medical workers to provide quality care to meet the diverse patients impacted by this health condition.
Making Families Feel at Home
Beyond providing accommodations, the Guest House strives to ensure that families feel comfortable, especially when many feel distressed over a loved one receiving critical care.
“A lot of what we do in Guest Services is tell them, ‘Hey, here are some areas to visit. Here’s some things to do,'” said Guest House Assistant House Manager Art Sims.
“While their families are healing, we take care of the entire family. We make sure everybody is okay when they’re staying with us,” he said.
That also extends to the facility’s community members and volunteers who help enhance the guest experience. The organization’s commitment to providing meals, especially during the challenging times of COVID-19, showcases the dedication to holistic support, said Jan Kroeschell, the manager of volunteers and programming at the Guest House.
Looking towards the future, Helman outlines short-term and long-term priorities. Short-term goals include supporting operating excellence, expanding the volunteer program, and building connections in the local community. As for the long-term, those objectives involve increasing partnerships, exploring new opportunities and continually improving the physical space to offer guests a more welcoming experience.
In October, the Guest House held a ribbon cutting for the new addition of a community room at the facility in honor of Reich.
Within the continuum of healthcare support, the Guest House Chicago aims to be a beacon of compassion, offering more than just accommodations.
It provides a community, a haven, and a promise that, in times of medical crisis, families will not walk alone.
Ultimately, says Helman, the Guest House strives to continue to have better offerings for its guests.
“If they’re here for a night, it’s a good experience,” he said.
“And if they’re here for much longer than one day, it continues to be a good, welcoming and supportive experience for them.”
For more information on the IMD Guest House and its services, visit guesthousechicago.org.
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