This pandemic has greatly impacted the lives of the homeless, especially the ones sleeping on streets. The outreaching team of The Salvation Army Integrated Service for Street Sleepers has never slowed down and has been working continuously to follow up this group and offer timely supports. Derek, a nurse of the outreaching team, goes out with medical care volunteers every week to follow up the medical conditions of the homeless on the streets. They also provide basic medical check-up and share anti-pandemic information. He pointed out that street sleepers might not be able to receive information as fast and as much as we did, and might not fully grasp the idea and the situation of this pandemic.

'During this period we have spent particular effort on health and hygiene education, showing them how to wear masks correctly, when to use sanitisers, the COVID-19 symptoms and other aspects they should pay attention to.'

When the whole city was suffering the shortage of masks, naturally it was even more difficult for street sleepers to obtain anti-pandemic supplies. Thanks to the donations from the kind public, anti-pandemic supplies were then available for them to tide over this difficult time. In order to process and distribute the donated goods in a timely way, Derek and the social workers worked doubly hard. 'It seemed that the homeless did not usually receive much attention in society. However, this time many companies and organisations actively approached us to offer help. The care they showed for the homeless was indeed a very nice surprise.' The heartwarming supports from the community gave the team so much encouragement.