Suspected overdose of homeless man in Dearborn Heights places new focus on treatment

DEARBORN HEIGHTS, Mich. (FOX 2) - A homeless man was found dead Thursday morning in Dearborn Heights. 

Police suspect he died from a drug overdose, but are still awaiting the toxicology and autopsy reports.

Dearborn Heights police received a call regarding a dead body around 10:45 a.m, according to the director of police support services, Paul Vanderplow. The man was located near Telegraph and Hanover, an area that is known to be frequented by homeless individuals.

"There is a homeless encampment here. With that said, and after seeing this, we’re going to be contacting some social service agencies. I think there's a few more individuals living over here so we're going to try to get them relocated to something more appropriate and safe," Vanderplow said.

Mobile services provided by the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network (DWIHN) are trying to tackle the problem of substance abuse and homelessness.

"We have a big problem in Wayne County," said DWHIN's director of substance use disorders, Judy Davis. 

The collaborative effort to serve homeless populations with mental health and substance abuse issues is continuing to develop.

"We’re doing a lot of things to address the problem," Davis said.

Probably the most targeted support comes from DWHIN’s Homeless Outreach Team – known as D-HOT for short.

"They’re out there, boots on the ground, constantly going to those locations and trying to get them into services," Davis said.

D-HOT is focused on basic needs and referrals to behavioral and housing services.

But it's not easy.

So far, the team has encountered more than 1,100 homeless people, but only 36 were connected to mental health, housing, and emergency shelter.

"A lot of times, when you’re working with this homeless population, a lot of times that’s their comfort zone," Davis said. "Sometimes they have to try three or four times before they can get them into services."