The Star spoke with Angie Draskovic, president and CEO of the Yonge Street Mission, on the risks homeless people face heading into the colder months, and how you can help if you see someone in trouble.

What are the risks to homeless people as the temperature drops?

Everything is heightened in terms of the risks. The risk is to people who are on the street, but it also affects people who are precariously housed.

They might be couch-surfing, or going from place to place, or they may even be in shelters, because they’re not allowed to stay in the shelter during the day.

Those kinds of things cause people to be outside for extended periods of time in the cold.

What’s so dangerous about staying out in the cold too long?

The heighted risks associated with cold are potentially as extreme as risk of death, as we saw with that homeless man last year in the bus shelter.

But there are also increased heath complications, like frostbite and other medical problems.

At the Yonge Street Mission, for example, we have a health centre. Youth come in and they end up going to see the doctors with frostbite on their toes, fingers, noses and ears, the more sensitive or vulnerable areas.

That is actually then difficult, because they have decreased mobility. They’re going back out on the street and they can’t walk as well with the frostbite. They’re in pain.

The other risks that are out there are in terms of safety — they’re more vulnerable. They’re not as well able to move around or protect themselves in situations that occur on the street. So it’s difficult all the way around.

Why are people out there anyway?

That’s where you get into understanding more of the nuances of the mental health issues and addiction issues associated with someone who’s been homeless for an extended period of time.

There can be physical issues like acquired brain injury, which inhibits a person’s ability to make decisions.

So you’ve got a package of complex issues, and individuals will find safety, when they’re in that kind of scenario, in different ways.

They might have a girlfriend or a boyfriend and the shelter may not allow them both to come in. So they’ll chose to stay out together rather than go in.

Or they may have a pet and that relational connection with that pet is life-giving for them, and a source of security. (Many shelters don’t allow pets.)

While that might seem like bad decision-making to you and I, it’s difficult to understand how important that is in the mind of someone who’s in that situation.

What should people do if they see a homeless person or someone on the street who might be in trouble, but it’s not an emergency?

Definitely call 311; get a professional to come and help. (Members of the public can call 311 to get the person connected with outreach assistance. They should call 911 in an emergency.)

The average person who is not in the sector is not necessarily equipped to know how to help that person, or what might arise if they try to help that person.

If they’re still out there, by definition, under those conditions, it’s going to take a very skilled person to encourage them to go inside.

Call 311, get a professional to help. But if (you) see the individual looking at (you), look them in the eyes and say “Hi.”

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They feel invisible. They don’t feel seen. They don’t feel like they have any value.

Give them the benefit of dignity.