New Homelessness Resource Center Articles

'Housing first' key to helping homeless

2012-05-15T10:04:57

There is a growing movement to house the chronically homeless in Saskatoon, but more capacity is needed, a city report says. The report on creating a plan to end homelessness within a decade, similar to one adopted by Calgary, lays out the City of Saskatoon's role in housing and the growing movement toward the "housing first" model. Housing first, or "rapid rehousing," is a relatively new approach to housing that aims to find people a permanent residence - rather than providing people a succession of shelter and transitional housing - before addressing other issues such as mental health, addictions or employment. Proponents say it saves taxpayers money compared to the jumble of social services, shelter and emergency responder resources used to help the homeless.

Journal Name: The Star Phoenix

Targets and Grading - The Annual Report Card on Ending Homelessness in Ottawa

2012-05-14T10:25:49

The Alliance to End Homelessness Ottawa (ATEH) assigns grades mathematically, starting with the 2010 Report Card on Ending Homelessness in Ottawa, for these indicators: Affordable Housing, Housing Affordability, Homelessness (emergency shelter use), and Length of Stay in emergency shelter. ATEH uses the Annual Targets Table and the Indicator Table and compares gains or losses in one year. The data for subsequent years can then be compared to what would be required to end homelessness in 10 years. Many communities have adopted 10 year plans to end homelessness so this time span is a natural point of comparison for our City.

Organization: Alliance to End Homelessness

Thomas Jefferson Area Coalition for the Homeless (TJACH) “Haven House” Project

2012-05-10T05:07:52

In the summer of 2011, a team of five undergraduate architecture students from the University of Virginia worked with a graduate student mentor and faculty advisor under an innovative design-build program, Initiative reCOVER. The team worked with a non-profit community partner, the Thomas Jefferson Area Coalition for the Homeless (TJACH), on addressing the lack of shelter available to homeless people in Charlottesville, Virginia. The efforts of the summer involved research into a number of related areas, which coalesced in the design of a unique approach to housing the homeless. The pedagogy of Initiative reCOVER, paired with TJACH’s expert knowledge and creative approach to homelessness, aided the team in its efforts to produce an environmentally conscious and socially supportive design. The design proposal exhibits a novel prototype in the field of supportive housing and is a tool for spreading local awareness of the issues underlying homelessness.

Journal Name: UVA Journal

Social, Structural and Behavioral Determinants of Overall Health Status in a Cohort of Homeless and Unstably Housed HIV-Infected Men

2012-05-10T05:06:28

Journal Name: PLoS One

Directly Observed Antidepressant Medication Treatment and HIV Outcomes among Homeless and Marginally Housed HIV+ Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial

2012-05-10T05:04:38

Journal Name: American Journal of Public Health

Substance Use, Self-Esteem, and Self-Efficacy Among Homeless and Runaway Youth in New Orleans

Maccio, Elaine M.; Schuler, Jamie T. — 2012-05-10T05:00:55

Each year, nearly 1.7 million children and adolescents in the US run away or are forced out by their caregivers. Although several studies have examined numerous risk and protective factors among homeless and runaway youth (HRY), little is known about this population’s self-efficacy. This cross-sectional study investigates substance use, self-esteem, and self-efficacy in 51 HRY in New Orleans. Results include high rates of substance use disorders, lower self-esteem and self-efficacy compared with that of non-HRY in previous studies, and no significant correlation between substance use and self-esteem or self-efficacy. The authors interpret these findings and discuss their implications for practice and future research.

Journal Name: Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal

Death, Drugs, and Disaster: Mortality Among New Orleans' Homeless

Rayburn, Rachel L.; Pals, Heili; Wright, James D. — 2012-05-10T04:57:53

Tracking homeless individuals over time has proved to be extremely difficult; thus, only limited longitudinal data on the homeless exist. We analyze longitudinal data originally collected from the New Orleans Homeless Substance Abusers Program in 1991-1993, supplemented with mortality data for the same sample by year 2010. We use social bonding theory to examine the effect of conventional social ties on mortality among a sample of substance abusing homeless people. This is of special concern when researching the older homeless persons. We find that social bonding theory does not help to understand mortality among this population. However, alcohol abuse, as compared to crack cocaine, does increase the likelihood of early mortality.

Journal Name: Care Management Journals

Medicaid Financing for Services in Supportive Housing for Chronically Homeless People: Current Practices and Opportunities

Wilkins, Carol; Burt, Martha R.; Mauch, Danna — 2012-05-10T04:57:05

In 2014, most homeless people will become Medicaid-eligible under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 based on their low incomes. Many homeless people have complex physical and behavioral health conditions for which they seek care through frequent use of emergency rooms and inpatient hospitalization, at considerable cost in public resources. With appropriate supportive services, inappropriate use of crisis health services can be avoided. Medicaid reimbursement is an important source of funding for many of the health, care coordination, and recovery support services that help homeless people succeed in housing and stop such inappropriate use. Among the best indicators of Medicaid’s potential usefulness to homeless people once they become beneficiaries are the ways that today’s providers have been able to use Medicaid to cover health care and behavioral health care for people who have been chronically homeless and are now living in permanent supportive housing (PSH). In October 2010, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, contracted with Abt Associates Inc. for a study to explore the roles that Medicaid, Community Health Centers, and other HHS programs might play in providing services linked to housing for people who experience chronic homelessness through PSH. Permanent Supportive Housing provides a permanent home for formerly homeless people with disabilities, along with the health care and other supportive services needed to help tenants adjust to living in housing and make the changes in their lives that will help them keep their housing. It differs from group homes, board and care facilities, and other treatment programs in that most tenants hold their own leases, and keeping their housing is usually not contingent on their participating in services or remaining at a certain level of illness. Because Medicaid is implemented through partnerships between states and the Federal Government, every state’s Medicaid program is different. Medicaid is only one component of strategies that communities use to create and sustain supportive housing. It does not pay for housing costs, and Medicaid reimbursement is available only for services that address health-related issues. This study focuses on communities known to be using Medicaid to provide integrated health, mental health, and substance use services combined with housing for chronically homeless people. Other states and providers will develop new models of service delivery and reimbursement in the coming years.

Organization: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Expanding early childhood mental health consultation to new venues: Serving infants and young children in domestic violence and homeless shelters

Brinamen, Charles F. ; Taranta, Adriana N.; Johnston, Kadija — 2012-05-10T04:55:21

The number of infants and young children affected by homelessness and domestic violence is growing, and the effect of these experiences on children is wide-ranging. Early childhood mental health consultation (ECMHC) has expanded to these settings to help the adults attend to very young children whose needs are often obscured by families' crises. Recent research in ECMHC to childcare has cited the salience of the consultant–consultee relationship as the central contributor to positive change in caregiver's behavior and children's experience. This article explores the similarities and variations in the consultant's way of being that are necessary to expand this relationship-based ECMHC model to adult-focused settings. This has incorporated a combination of consultative shifts: expanded training, appreciation for families' survival priorities, attention to the effects of unavoidable adult decisions on children, increased tolerance for the affect this raises in parents and caseworkers, and greater efforts to create space for reflection and thinking. Caseworkers' attenuated contact with and limited prior knowledge about young children creates challenges in identifying and responding to concerns about children. The particular systemic and relational difficulties that emerge in shelters and that influence caseworkers' responsiveness to clients are explored.

Journal Name: Infant Mental Health Journal

Accommodation, homelessness and reoffending of prisoners: Results from the Surveying Prisoner Crime Reduction (SPCR) survey

Williams, Kim; Poyser, Jennifer; Hopkins, Kathryn — 2012-05-10T04:55:06

This report summarises the accommodation backgrounds and needs of newly sentenced prisoners, and the links between these and reoffending on release. Data for this report come from Surveying Prisoner Crime Reduction (SPCR) (a longitudinal cohort study of 1,435 adult prisoners sentenced to between one month and four years in prison in 2005 and 2006), the Police National Computer (PNC), and the 2003 general population survey – the Offending, Crime, and Justice Survey (OCJS).

Beyond the ‘At Risk’ Individual: Housing and the Eradication of Poverty to Prevent Homelessness

Parsell, Cameron; Marston, Greg — 2012-05-10T04:54:28

A prevention framework represents one of the fundamental means of the Australian Government's contemporary drive to achieve permanent reductions in homelessness. Consistent with prevailing policies in the UK and US, Australia has approached homelessness prevention through identification and early intervention of individuals ‘at risk’ of homelessness. In this article we suggest that prevention strategies focused on the risk factors that individual pose obscures efforts to address the underlying structural factors that contribute to homelessness, or to reduce the prevalence of homelessness at the overall population level. The article examines the efficacy of increasing the supply of affordable housing to prevent homelessness, but suggests that the provision of housing alone may be insufficient to realising related well-being objectives. In turn, it is proposed that policy which focuses on poverty reduction has the capacity to achieve the sustainable prevention of homelessness ambitions.

Journal Name: Australian Journal of Public Administration

Establishing Eligibility for SSI for Chronically Homeless People

Burt, Martha R.; Wilkins, Carol — 2012-05-10T04:54:13

Organization: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

(Dis)Empowering Homeless People: The Battle for Atlanta's Imperial Hotel, 1990-1991

Steffen, Charles G. — 2012-05-10T04:53:27

This article examines the occupation of Atlanta’s Imperial Hotel by homeless people in the summer of 1990. This dramatic event represented the apogee of homeless empowerment in Atlanta during the last thirty years. It allows us to examine a “poor people’s movement” that wielded the power of disruption to put the issue of affordable housing on the agenda of the city’s governing regime. The Imperial takeover also provides an opportunity to consider the short-term factors that momentarily opened a space for such disruptive action and the long-term restructurings that ultimately disaggregated and disempowered homeless people.

Journal Name: Journal of Urban History

Medical, psychiatric and demographic factors associated with suicidal behavior in homeless veterans

Goldstein, Gerald; Luther, James Francis; Haas, Gretchen Louise — 2012-05-10T04:51:12

This study assessed potential for suicidal behaviors associated with sociodemographic, predisposing physical and mental health factors and self-reported psychological problems among homeless veterans in a large northeastern region. Data were obtained from a demographic and clinical history interview conducted with 3595 homeless veterans. Odds-ratio (OR) statistics were used to assess potential for suicidal behavior. Statistically significant ratios were similar for ideation and attempts. The highest ratios were for self-report of depression and difficulty controlling violence, but statistically significant ratios were found for reporting sleeping in a treatment facility the night before the interview, receiving VA support for a psychiatric condition, and the diagnoses of Alcoholism, Mood Disorder and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Low but statistically significant odds-ratios were obtained for most of the physical health items. A negative odds-ratio was obtained for African–American ethnicity. Logistic regression results indicated that for ideation and attempts items entered first involved subjective report of trouble controlling violent behavior and experiencing depression. High odds ratios for the interview items concerning experiencing serious depression and having difficulties controlling violence may have strong implications for treatment and management of homeless veterans. There may be up to 14–1 odds that an individual who reports being seriously depressed or having difficulty inhibiting aggression may have a serious potential for suicidal behaviors.

Journal Name: Psychiatry Research

Neuropsychological and Cognitive Performance of Homeless Adults

2012-05-09T02:39:20

Many homeless people may have been exposed to events and situations that could potentially produce neuropsychological impairments. In the current study, 80 homeless participants underwent a battery of tests designed to 1) estimate long-standing established memory and intelligence, which was assumed to indicate prehomeless function and 2) measure current memory and intelligence function. Mental health screening and substance misuse data were also obtained. Results indicated that current memory and IQ were significantly lower than the estimated normal population means and also their prehomeless estimates. The memory score change was from 100.5 to 90.3 (p < .001) and IQ change from 98.8 to 95.6 (p = .038). The interaction between task type (memory or IQ) and measure (prehomeless or current) was also significant (p = .003), signifying that there was a greater change in the domain of memory function than in IQ. Many participants reported substance misuse and clinically significant mental health concerns. We conclude that the homeless individuals in our sample appear to have suffered a reduction in cognitive function, which may have occurred either during homelessness or prior to it.

Journal Name: Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science

Assessing Urban Aboriginal Housing and Homelessness in Canada

Belanger, Yale D.; Head, Gabrielle Weasel; Awosoga, Olu — 2012-05-09T11:43:09

This report sought to determine the current state of urban Aboriginal housing and how itcan be improved. An up-to-date mapping of Aboriginal people’s housing conditions in urbanareas is provided. Nationally rates of urban Aboriginal homeownership and rental rates are lower than that of mainstream Canada. Urban Aboriginal homelessness is a substantial issue based on noticeably higher levels of Aboriginal representation amongst the national homeless population.It is evident that national policies are needed to specifically aid urban Aboriginal renters and homeowners, and to ameliorate urban Aboriginal homelessness. Home ownership helps reducethe gap between mainstream and Aboriginal rates of core housing need. However, Aboriginalrenters are considerably worse off than their non-Aboriginal counterparts, and present higher rates of core housing need and overcrowding. Beyond affordability issues individual andcommunity-driven resistance to Aboriginal housing initiatives and individual Aboriginal desires for permanent urban residency are evident. A cyclical process hindering urban Aboriginal renter and homeownership advancement is also apparent. Métis and Non-Status Indians are more likelyto become homeowners than Status Indians and Inuit. Existing programs are inadequate toaddress the housing and homeless issues identified, and successful approaches such as theHousing First model have to this point been largely overlooked. We would suggest establishing proactive policies with the goal of facilitating individual transition into urban centres, while also exploring why discrimination and racism remains prevalent for urban Aboriginal renters and homeowners. We recommend that the Canadian Government formally endorse the National AboriginalHousing Association’s call for a national non-reserve housing strategy. Establishing a national Housing and Homelessness Secretariat devoted to reserve and urban Aboriginal housing andhomeless issues is also advocated. Additional research is required to determine why Métis and Non-Status Indians are more likely to become homeowners than Status Indians and Inuit. And acomprehensive national enumeration of Aboriginal homelessness is required. The nature of homelessness needs to be explored, as does our understanding of rural Aboriginal homeless ratesand its impact on urban lifestyles. Consideration should be given to reinstating and increasing funding for social housing and mortgage subsidies under the Aboriginal off-reserve programs of the CMHC. Greater autonomy and flexibility must be granted to Aboriginal organizations delivering programs in rural areas, and to urban social housing corporations. There is a need toexplore the socio-economic reasons of core housing need and to determine whether low labour market and educational outcomes are impeding urban Aboriginal homeownership. A nationalstudy exploring the impacts of NIMBY on rental opportunities, and the related influence over urban Aboriginal homeless rates, is required as is greater attention to creating proactive policies to assist with urban Aboriginal homeownership and improving rental opportunities, and tocombat homelessness. Ottawa needs to consider providing rental subsidies as a cost-effectiveoption. Finally, public education strategies need to be developed to demonstrate NIMBY’snegative impact on urban Aboriginal rental opportunities, and how improved homeownershiprates translate into lower public response costs for poverty programming.

Organization: National Association of Friendship Centres (NAFC) and the Office of the Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians (OFI)

Social, Structural and Behavioral Determinants of Overall Health Status in a Cohort of Homeless and Unstably Housed HIV-Infected Men

2012-05-09T11:30:28

Journal Name: PLoS One

Study: Lack of Housing Most Important Health Risk for People with HIV

Farrow, Kenyon — 2012-05-09T11:14:06

A new study shows that housing and food are the biggest predictors of health than for people with HIV. The study was conducted by University of California at San Francisco on 288 homeless men with HIV over a six year period (a similar study was done last year with homeless women and had similar results). The SF Gate reported on the research study, and noted “Lacking basic necessities had a larger negative health effect than drug abuse, the virus in their blood or lack of treatment. Even among patients who were getting drug therapy for their HIV, the effects of being homeless offset most of the positive effects of treatment. But for many very poor patients, being homeless keeps them from getting consistent drug treatment at all.”

Journal Name: Housing Works

Homelessness Partnering Secretariat Teleforum Series Presents: Raising the Roof’s Youthworks Private Sector Engagement Project

2012-05-09T10:30:30

Organization: Homelessness Partnering Secretariat

Changing Directions, Changing Lives: The Mental Health Strategy for Canada

2012-05-08T04:56:41

This is the first mental health strategy for Canada. Its release marks a significant milestone in the journey to bring mental health ‘out of the shadows’ and to recognize, in both words and deeds, the truth of the saying that there can be no health without mental health. Although there are several population groups and policy areas for which the federal government has important mental health responsibilities, the organization and delivery of health care, social services and education in Canada largely fall to provincial and territo-rial governments. Despite the fact that pan-Canadian initiatives could help all jurisdictions to improve mental health outcomes, planning documents that address these matters from the perspective of the country as a whole are rare. Jurisdictional challenges have been compounded by the stigma that has kept discussion of mental health issues out of the public arena for far too long. Changing Directions, Changing Lives is the culmination of many years of hard work and advocacy by people across the country. A key driver behind its development has been the testimony of thousands of people living with mental health problems and illnesses. In increasing numbers they have found the courage to speak publicly about their personal experiences and the many obstacles they face in obtaining the help and support they need from an underfunded and fragmented mental health system. Family members have echoed this assessment while pointing to the many challenges that they also confront. Service providers (within the mental health system as well as outside of it), researchers, and policy experts have added their voice to the chorus calling for much-needed change. They have all had a voice in the development of this Strategy

Organization: Mental Health Commission of Canada

Lived Experience as Expertise: Considerations in the Development of Advisory Groups of People with Lived Experience of Homelessness and/or Poverty

2012-05-08T04:39:24

Lived Experience as Expertise: Considerations in the Development of Advisory Groups of People with Lived Experience of Homelessness and/or Poverty has been developed for use by individuals, organizations, community groups and all orders of government interested in establishing an advisory group of people with lived experience of homelessness and/or poverty. It includes a variety of techniques and promising practices related to initiating an advisory group, recruitment, facilitation, logistics, and helping a group to remain strong over time.

Organization: Regional Municipality of Waterloo - Social Services

Housing Homeless Youth in Vancouver: Key Barriers and Strategic Responses

Basi, Sandip; Clelland, Tabrina; Khind, Navi; Morris, Amy; Severinson, Peter — 2012-05-08T04:21:29

There were an estimated 65,000 youth in Canada who were either homeless or living in emergency shelters in 2009. Vancouver’s 2011 homeless count found 349 homeless youth, an increase of 29 percent from the 2008 count. Research shows that the causes and characteristics of youth homelessness are distinct from those of the adult homeless population. Housing agencies around the world are studying these differences in order to craft specialized strategies to reduce youth homeless. This study attempts to identify the best strategy for Vancouver. Our approach has four components: a review of the literature on causes and appropriate responses to youth homelessness, a review of successful policies and practices used in other regions facing youth-homelessness challenges comparable to Vancouver's, detailed case studies of select programs and an overview of services for homeless youth in Vancouver. Our selection of successful practices is informed by literature from academia, government agencies and NGOs, as well as from recommendations by policy leaders and practitioners who participated in phone- or email-based interviews.

Organization: BC Housing

Mental-health strategy calls for complete overhaul, $4-billion commitment

Picard, André — 2012-05-08T04:16:15

Canada’s mental-health system is underfunded and poorly co-ordinated and needs a complete overhaul to meet the needs of patients and their families, the Mental Health Commission says in its long-awaited national strategy. The 152-page document recommends an immediate infusion of $4-billion annually for mental-health care; calls on employers to implement psychological health and safety standards to protect workers; says efforts to divert people with severe mental-health problems out of the justice system and into care need to be accelerated; and embraces a “housing first” philosophy to get homeless people suffering from mental illness off the streets.

Journal Name: The Globe and Mail

SAMHSA's Free HHRN Webinar Series: Prescribing Medications to Individuals who are Homeless

Pirard, Sandrine; O'Connell, James J. ; Reilly, Eileen C. — 2012-05-08T01:28:56

Prescribing medications to individuals who are homeless is challenging. Factors that complicate prescribing include lack of trust in the provider; being on the street without shelter; issues of theft and loss of medications; frequent relocation, mental illness, substance abuse; other health issues, lack of outreach activities and resources, and lack of family and social support. This webinar will address strategies to overcome these factors. Topics of engaging homeless clients in treatment, helping people to feel empowered in decision-making regarding taking medication, assisting people to adhere to medication regimes, and maintaining long-standing relationships with patients will be outlined. Case studies illustrating teaching points will be emphasized.

Organization: SAMHSA

Tags: free; Webcast

Characteristics of Homeless Adults with Serious Mental Illnesses Served by Three Street-Level Federally Funded Homelessness Programs

Page, Jaimie; Petrovich, James; Kang, Suk-Young — 2012-05-07T04:31:10

In 2010, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development's biannual point-in-time census of people who are homeless estimated that approximately 649,000 people in the U.S. were homeless on a given night. Just over one-quarter (26.2%) of the sheltered individuals were also reported as having severe mental illness (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 2009). The homeless mentally ill (HMI) population has been reported as hard-to-reach (Padgett et al. 2008) and in need of specialized, collaborative, stree-level clinical approaches (Morse et al. 1996; Stergiopoulos et al. 2010; Susser et al. 1990). Yet, there individuals face significant barriers when trying to access services (Applewhite 1997; O'Connell et al. 2004; Stergiopoulous et al. 2010), particularly public mental health services (Page 2007). To assist this population, three Federal programs were designed to meet their street-level needs (Rowe et al. 1998) and provide a referral mechanism to mainstream public mental health services for ongoing mental health care. The three programs are Safe Havens (SH), Programs for Assistance in Transitioning from Homelessness (PATH), and Health Care for the Homeless projects (HCH)...

Journal Name: Community Mental Health Journal

Tags: homeless

Backgrounder on Homeless Youth and Mental Health

2012-05-07T02:15:15

Youth homelessness has existed in Canada for decades, however, recent years have seen a significant increase in the number of young people with complex mental health issues who are also facing the isolation and struggle of homelessness. In communities across the country, the failure to address the specific needs of homeless youth with complex mental health needs, and the lack of appropriate, timely services is resulting in a crisis for homeless young people, their families and the community agencies that seek to support them. The results are devastating as Canada’s most marginalized young people fall between the cracks. They are often ineligible for, or not well served by children and adult mental health systems – nor well suited to services developed for homeless adults with complex mental health needs.

Organization: National Learning Community on Youth Homelessness

Tags: homeless

Ending Youth Homelessness - A CHRA Policy Position Statement

2012-05-02T02:35:23

Homelessness continues to be an unacceptable reality in many Canadian communities, and youth are one of the fastest growing segments of the homeless population. This is despite the fact that much has been learned about successful strategies to prevent and end homelessness. This policy position considers both youth who are homeless, as well as those at risk of homelessness. It identifies the pathways through which young people become homeless or risk homelessness and includes substantive recommendations for action which would prevent and end homelessness. This statement emphasizes why interventions specific to youth are required.

Organization: Canadian Housing and Renewal Association (CHRA)

Tags: homelessness

Supportive Housing with Empathy

Evans, Wendy Grace — 2012-04-27T12:45:02

Jaime Ebaugh of Southwest Counseling Solutions in Detroit, Michigan discusses Piquette Square, which offers permanent supportive housing to veterans experiencing homelessness. The organization uses a combination of Assertive Community Treatment (ACT), PATH outreach, and referrals, and a unique approach to alternative healing modalities that impact mind, body, and spirit.

Organization: SAMHSA

Tags: feature; supportive housing; Assertive Community Treatment; PATH; alternative healing; recovery

Reaching Out With Patience

Evans, Wendy Grace — 2012-04-27T12:43:05

Outreach worker Ysi Ramos shares his thoughts on the essence of outreach, which he believes comes from patience and the ability to build rapport over time. He and a colleague from REACH in Seattle, Washington rely on patience and other resources to build trust with people who are living on the streets.

Organization: SAMHSA

Tags: feature; outreach; encampments; Shelters

Sisters Empowering Sisters: A Sanctuary

Evans, Wendy Grace — 2012-04-27T12:41:04

Sisters Empowering Sisters is a peer specialist-run program in Washington, DC that offers women in recovery from co-occurring disorders an opportunity to connect with other women who share the same struggles. Project Director Renee Robertson speaks about the powerful impact the sisters can have on each others’ lives when there is common understanding about moving away from loss, grief, and suffering, and towards hope and healing.

Organization: SAMHSA

Tags: feature; peer specialist; women; recovery; co-occurring

At the Top of Your Game

Berman, Claire — 2012-04-27T12:37:52

Greg Morris, Program Director for Peak Vista’s Homeless Health Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, shares strategies he employs to run a family practice on a limited budget for people experiencing homelessness. He discusses the importance of self-care in being able to provide the best services possible for his patients.

Organization: SAMHSA

Tags: feature; homeless health; peer learning; motivational interviewing; trauma-informed care; self-care

Region of Durham - Information on Affordable Housing for Developers

2012-04-27T10:44:51

Participation in School by Youth with Histories of Being Homeless - Homeless Hub Research Summary Series

The Homeless Hub — 2012-04-26T01:29:25

This study examines a number of things (e.g. coping, social service use, relationships) which are thought to influence whether or not youth with histories of homelessness participate in school. The researcher’s goal was to determine which of these factors predict school participation for young people who have been homeless.

The Impact of Being Homeless on Young Children and Their Families

Powell, Tenisha L. — 2012-04-25T04:43:46

Families with young children are the fastest growing population of the homeless. Homeless young children (under the age of 5) are especially vulnerable as early childhood professionals consider the early years to be the most critical developmental period in all domains (cognitive, social-emotional, physical, and language). The disruptions to a sense of stability and security and the lack of cognitive stimulation that comes with homelessness have a large impact on young children and their development. This article defines homelessness, summarizes what we know about the experiences of homeless children, reviews some of the educational rights offered to them, and offers a few strategies in working with homeless children and their families.

Journal Name: Journal for the Early Childhood Field

Tags: youth

Conceptualizing Social Integration Among Formerly Homeless Adults With Severe Mental Illness

Tsai, Jack; Rosenheck, Robert A. — 2012-04-25T04:42:41

The multiple dimensions of social integration among formerly homeless adults with severe mental illness have not been well-studied. Previous studies have focused on clinical measures or narrow components of social integration. We used a multisite study of chronically homeless adults who were provided housing to (a) identify the main factors related to social integration, (b) examine the association between clinical symptoms and social integration, and (c) examine whether social integration is associated with life satisfaction. A factor analysis identified six components of social integration: housing, community participation, civic activities, religious faith, social support, and treatment support. Social integration was found to be largely independent of clinical symptoms and had only a weak association with life satisfaction. These findings suggest supported housing programs needed to focus on improving client outcomes in several domains of social integration regardless of symptoms and that additional efforts are needed to improve life satisfaction among clients.

Journal Name: Journal of Community Psychology

Homelessness Outcome Reporting Normative Framework: Systems-Level Evaluation of Progress in Ending Homelessness

Austen, Tyrone; Pauly, Bernie — 2012-04-25T04:41:51

Homelessness is a serious and growing issue. Evaluations of systemic-level changes are needed to determine progress in reducing or ending homelessness. The report card methodology is one means of systems-level assessment. Rather than solely establishing an enumeration, homelessness report cards can capture pertinent information about structural determinants of homelessness. This information can inform the development of evidence-based strategies aimed at ending (rather than managing) homelessness. To aid in the development of homelessness report card creation, a systems-level Homelessness Outcome Reporting Normative Framework (the HORN Framework) was developed. This article provides an overview of the framework and its application.

Journal Name: Evaluation Review

Tags: homelessness

The Convergent and Concurrent Validity of Trait-Based Prototype Assessment of Personality Disorder Categories in Homeless Persons

Samuel, Douglas B.; Connolly, Adrian J. ; Ball, Samuel A. — 2012-04-25T04:41:10

The DSM-5 proposal indicates that personality disorders (PDs) be defined as collections of maladaptive traits but does not provide a specific diagnostic method. However, researchers have previously suggested that PD constructs can be assessed by comparing individuals’ trait profiles with those prototypic of PDs and evidence from the five-factor model (FFM) suggests that these prototype matching scores converge moderately with traditional PD instruments. The current study investigates the convergence of FFM PD prototypes with interview-assigned PD diagnoses in a sample of 99 homeless individuals. This sample had very high rates of PDs, which extends previous research on samples with more modest prevalence rates. Results indicated that diagnostic agreement between these methods was generally low but consistent with the agreement previously observed between explicit PD measures. Furthermore, trait-based and diagnostic interview scores evinced similar relationships with clinically important indicators such as abuse history and past suicide attempts. These findings demonstrate the validity of prototype methods and suggest their consideration for assessing trait-defined PD types within DSM-5.

Journal Name: Assessment

Tags: homeless

Correlates of Service Utilization among Homeless Youth

Tyler, Kimberly A.; Akinyemi, Sarah L. ; Kort-Butler, Lisa A. — 2012-04-25T04:32:46

Though few studies exist on service utilization among homeless youth in the U.S., services are important because without them, many of these young people may resort to delinquent strategies in order to meet their daily survival needs. The current study examines frequency and correlates of service utilization (i.e., shelters, food programs, street outreach, counseling, STI and HIV testing) among a sample of 249 homeless youth ages 14 to 21. Multivariate analysis revealed significant differences in service usage by sex, age, and sexual orientation. Experiencing family physical and/or sexual abuse, being kicked out of the family home, spending more nights per week sleeping on the street, and having ever stayed in a group home facility were significant correlates of homeless youths’ service usage.

Journal Name: Children and Youth Services Review

Provision of Contraceptive Services to Homeless Women: Results of a Survey of Health Care for the Homeless Providers

Saver, Barry G.; Weinreb, Linda; Gelberg, Lillian; Zerger, Suzanne — 2012-04-25T04:32:01

Homeless women have both a higher rate of pregnancy and a higher proportion of unintended pregnancies than other American women. The authors sought to learn about contraception services offered by providers of health care to homeless women and barriers to provision of long-acting, reversible contraception in these settings. A survey of the 31 member organizations in the national Health Care for the Homeless Practice-Based Research Network was conducted, inquiring about services provided and barriers to service provision. Among the 20 responding organizations (65% response rate), 17 directly provided contraceptive services; two referred patients elsewhere, and one provided no contraceptive services. All 17 that provided such services provided condoms; 15 provided oral contraceptives; 14 provided injectable contraception; 6 provided intrauterine devices, and 2 provided contraceptive implants. Barriers to providing the last two methods included lack of provider training, lack of resources for placement, costs, and concerns about complications. The present survey results suggested very limited access for homeless women across the country to the two most effective means of long-acting, reversible contraception. Modest investments of resources could reduce a number of barriers to providing these services.

Journal Name: Women & Health

Tags: homeless

Triple jeopardy---homeless, Black, and female: Pathways to and from crime and homelessness

Brann, Suzette Emerald. — 2012-04-25T04:30:51

An interpretive phenomenological approach was used to explore, illuminate, and interpret the lived experiences of 10 homeless African American women with criminal histories. A feminist lens was used to explore how race, gender, and criminal history coalesced to become women's pathways to crime and homelessness and to identify what services and interventions the women believed would be instrumental in helping them take new pathways away from homelessness and crime. The study findings indicated that women's pathways to crime were defined by traumatic childhood experiences, addiction, criminal role models, economic marginalization (the need for income), and damaged self-images. Pathways to homelessness were attributed to traumatic childhood experiences, addiction, low social and human capital, destructive personal relationships, criminal involvement, loss of public benefits, and pride. Common themes that the women defined as the essence of a homeless African American woman with a criminal history included feeling useless, degraded, insulted, discarded, and lacking in credibility. The study findings demonstrated the importance of providing homeless African American women with culturally relevant substance abuse treatment; gender-informed medical, psychiatric, and dental care; counseling that repaired self-esteem and self-image; access to subsidized housing; life skills training; employment readiness workshops; and spiritual resources to assist them in taking pathways away from crime and homelessness.

Health and Social Adjustment of Homeless Older Adults With a Mental Illness

2012-04-25T04:30:34

Journal Name: Psychiatric Services

Tags: homeless

Smoking Among Chronically Homeless Adults: Prevalence and Correlates

Tsai, Jack; Rosenheck, Robert A. — 2012-04-25T04:28:53

Journal Name: Psychiatric Services

Tags: homeless

Program Outcomes of Dually Diagnosed Homeless Participants in Transitional Housing Programs

Gambaccini-may, Angela — 2012-04-25T04:24:08

Individuals who experience mental illness and substance abuse are at serious risk for homelessness. Researchers have not demonstrated how face-to-face contacts between dually diagnosed homeless individuals and case managers can impact the participants' length of stay in transitional housing programs. The purpose of this archival, exploratory study was to determine if increases in face-to-face contacts between dually diagnosed homeless participants and case managers can shorten the length of stay in transitional housing programs. The impact of different staffing types (on-site staffing and community-based staffing) within housing programs on length of stay was also examined. The psychotherapeutic theory of the therapeutic alliance served as the theoretical underpinning for this study. The sample included 227 dually diagnosed homeless men and women from 3 transitional housing programs. The data for this study were collected over a 5-year period of admission and discharge forms. Data were analyzed using correlations and regression analyses. Results revealed that an increase in face-to-face contacts with case managers predicted shorter length of stay in transitional housing for dually diagnosed participants. Additional significant relationships between age, gender, diagnoses, face-to-face contacts, length of stay, and program outcome were found. Findings from this study inform social change by demonstrating that community based programs are effective in working with homeless participants. Transitional housing programs can enhance the effectiveness of their services by training staff to interact face to face with the participants earlier in the program, thus establishing therapeutic alliances sooner.

Tags: housing

Homeless Young People on Social Network Sites

Palzkill Woelfer, Jill; Hendry, David G. — 2012-04-25T04:21:55

This paper reports on the use of social network sites (MySpace and Facebook) by homeless young people, an extraordinary user population, made so in part by its vulnerability. Twenty-three participants of diverse ethnicities, 11 women and 12 men (mean age, 21.7 years), were interviewed in same-sex discussion groups of four participants each. The interviews consisted of questions about the uses, benefits, and harms of social network sites and how people present themselves online. Qualitative analysis of the discussion group transcripts shows how young people explore their identities, cultivate and exploit social ties, experience interpersonal tensions, manage incompatible audiences, and respond to shifting affiliations and transitions. From this analysis, implications for social intervention and technical design are presented, focused on maintaining ties with pro-social family and friends and with maintaining separation between communication spheres of incompatible audiences. This work contributes to the growing literature on vital, deeply human experiences that have become associated with social network sites.

Tags: homeless

Responding to the needs of youth who are homeless: Calling for politicized trauma-informed intervention

McKenzie-Mohr, Suzanne; Coates, John; McLeod, Heather — 2012-04-25T02:19:44

Trauma in the lives of youth who are homeless is a pervasive reality. In this article, a politicized understanding of trauma is taken up to explore the complex psychological, relational, and social/political challenges experienced by many young persons facing homelessness. Their needs are contrasted with the dominant framework for assessing and addressing homelessness among youth, which fails to adequately account for the effects of trauma in their lives. The authors argue for therapeutic approaches to address the negative effects of trauma; development of community services that adequately respond to the consequences of traumatic life experiences; and socially responsible policies that ensure provision of adequate services and also aim to address root causes of youth homelessness. While current conceptualizations of trauma-informed services go some distance toward achieving these goals, the authors argue that it is only by taking up a more radical understanding of trauma that interventions will be employed to better achieve these targets. Toward this end, the authors introduce a framework that integrates the SPECs model (Evans & Prilleltensky, 2007; Prilleltensky, 2005) with trauma-informed service provision, thereby infusing a social and political analysis to guide more effective trauma-informed solution building in response to the issue of youth homelessness.

Journal Name: Children and Youth Services Review

Tags: youth

Prolonged and persistent homelessness: multivariable analyses in a cohort experiencing current homelessness and mental illness in Vancouver, British Columbia

Patterson, Michelle L. ; Somers, Julian M. ; Moniruzzaman, Akm — 2012-04-25T01:49:38

Recent research and policy making concerning homelessness has focused on the particular challenges associated with ending chronic homelessness. It is generally assumed that individuals who have been homeless for longer durations have a greater impact on the public system of care and are in need of the most assistance. The aim of this study was to examine key sample characteristics by duration of homelessness (total lifetime duration and longest single episode) using bivariate and multivariable regression analysis. Participants (n = 425) were adults recruited in Vancouver, BC on the basis of absolute homelessness or precarious housing and a current mental disorder. Interviewer-administered questionnaires elicited details concerning demographics, mental illness, substance use, service use, and duration of homelessness. In multivariable models, “persistent” homelessness (lifetime duration of three or more years) was independently predicted by male gender, older age, younger age when first homeless, incomplete high school, past month alcohol use, and daily illicit drug use. “Prolonged” homelessness, a single episode of one year or more, was independently predicted by older age, younger age when first homeless, current substance dependence, daily illicit drug use, and not seeing a psychiatrist in the past month. Substance use is strongly associated with prolonged and persistent homelessness among people with mental disorders, as is the early experience of first becoming homeless. Our findings replicate and extend those of previous studies, and are discussed in terms of their implications for service delivery and the broader construct of social inclusion.

Journal Name: Mental Health and Substance Use

Tags: homelessness

Neoliberal Governance and Faith-Based Initiatives: Agentive Cracks in the Logic Informing Homeless Sheltering in South Carolina's Capital

Kingsolver, Ann — 2012-04-25T01:43:53

This essay began as part of a session honoring Vincent Lyon-Callo's ethnography of governmentality and structural violence in the homeless sheltering industry, in which he worked in Massachusetts. This is a review of his book Inequality, Poverty, and Neoliberal Governance: Activist Ethnography in the Homeless Sheltering Industry, and also an application of Lyon-Callo's argument. He encourages attention to the neoliberal logic and structural conditions shaping understandings and experiences of homelessness. In this essay, I discuss visits with students (who have read his book) to homeless shelters in Columbia, South Carolina, and analyze a long-term debate in the city about where to locate a large service facility for the homeless. I argue that the national neoliberal and neoconservative policy of strengthening faith-based initiatives in providing public services ironically reduced the possibility of neoliberal governance of those services at the local level, as when business owners ask the city to reduce the visibility of homelessness in the commercial district.

Journal Name: Rethinking Marxism: A Journal of Economics, Culture & Society

Tags: shelter

Affordable housing networks: a case study in the Phoenix metropolitan region

Lucio, Joanna; Ramirez de la Cruz, Edgar — 2012-04-25T01:32:05

The lack of regional housing coordination in metropolitan areas has led to a disparity in the distribution of affordable housing. In its place is a haphazard, ad hoc system for developing and supplying affordable housing. Through a descriptive analysis of the greater Phoenix metropolitan regional housing arena, this study explores the positions of public, nonprofit, and private agencies in a network of participants producing affordable housing and the implications of the structure of this network for the successful implementation of affordable housing policies. Results show that the number of contacts actors had in the network are on average low, that private organizations are few and yet becoming more involved through partnerships with NPOs, and that government agencies have the potential to be brokers in the affordable housing network but currently do not take or are unwilling to take advantage of that position.

Journal Name: Housing Policy Debate

Tags: housing

Homelessness or the Violence of Poverty and Exploitation: Does It Matter?

Lyon-Callo, Vincent. — 2012-04-25T01:29:55

For a session at a Rethinking Marxism international conference, Talmadge Wright and Ann Kingsolver offered detailed and rich critical commentaries on my writing on homelessness. Ann Kingsolver, along with her students, further develops those thoughts in her essay appearing in this issue. Those interventions, along with my subsequent experiences, have resulted in my rethinking an earlier focus on neoliberal governance. This paper draws on over two decades of ethnographic research, activism, and direct service work on homelessness in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Michigan to explore both the limitations of dominant responses to homelessness and the possibilities of new ways of understanding and acting against violence.

Journal Name: Rethinking Marxism: A Journal of Economics, Culture & Society

Sexuality and Homelessness in Los Angeles Public Schools

2012-04-25T12:58:59

Recently, Corliss et al. published important findings demonstrating the disproportionate numbers of sexual minority youths who experience homelessness in Massachusetts. Because of great variations in homelessness by region, we would like to add to this body of evidence with similar data from Los Angeles, California. We collected data on sexuality and homelessness experiences in conjunction with the 2011 administration of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). Among LAUSD students, 37% of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or unsure-identifying youths and 22% of heterosexual youths reported having spent at least one night homeless in the previous 12 months.

Journal Name: American Journal of Public Health

Homelessness as an Incurable Condition? The Medicalization of the Homeless in the Swedish Special Housing Provision

Löfstrand, Cecilia Hansen. — 2012-04-25T12:29:21

In Sweden, the prevailing model for combating homelessness has been, and to a large extent still is, the disciplining staircase model, which stresses absolute sobriety as a criterion for eligibility for municipally organized special housing. The model builds on a view of the homeless as individuals incapable of independent living, albeit ones who are (potentially) able to become capable of independent living and (at least theoretically) of securing an ordinary apartment for themselves on the regular housing market, with the help of discipline and self-regulation (by adhering to the principle of absolute sobriety and complying with a number of other rules). In the staircase model, self-regulation is characteristically seen as a necessary precondition for this gradual improvement in the help receivers’ housing standard, their increasing independence (living without rules, regulations, and surveillance), and the stability of their living situation more in general (Sahlin, 2005).

Journal Name: Mental Illnesses – Evaluation, Treatments and Implications

Tags: homelessness

The Role of Supportive Housing in Homeless Children’s Well-Being: An Investigation of Child Welfare and Educational Outcomes

Hong, Saahoon.; Piescher, Kristine N. — 2012-04-25T12:27:51

Homelessness is a critical social challenge for the United States. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimated that over 650,000 individuals experienced homelessness in 2010, of whom nearly 20 percent experienced long-term homelessness (NAEH, 2011). However, the recent downturn of the economic climate has created a shift in the composition of the homeless population over time. Although the overall number of homeless individuals has remained fairly stable over the past few years, family homelessness increased by approximately 7% between 2008 and 2009 and 30% from 2007 to 2009 (HUD, 2010). Currently, children comprise 22% of the homeless population in the United States on any given night (HUD, 2010). The challenge of homelessness

Organization: Minnesota-Linking Information for Kids

Tags: housing

Employment Difficulties Experienced by Employed Homeless People: Labor Market Factors That Contribute to and Maintain Homelessness

Shier, Micheal L. ; Jones, Marion E. ; Graham, John R. — 2012-04-25T11:45:43

Labor market issues and challenges are primarily understood at an individual level, entrenched socially in policies and initiatives that seek to improve the workplace skills of people having difficulty attaching to the labor market, including people experiencing homelessness. In fact, the labor market is perceived to alleviate a person's situation of homelessness. In 2008 and 2009 qualitative data was collected from 61 employed people experiencing homelessness in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to better understand the intersection between the labor market and housing-related experiences. Respondents identified aspects of the labor market that were contributing to their current and ongoing situation of homelessness. Implications for practitioners are discussed to help address labor market attachment difficulties experienced by homeless people.

Journal Name: Journal of Poverty

Tags: homelessness

Survival on the Streets: Experiences of the Homeless Population and Constructive Suggestions for Assistance

McBride, Rebecca G. — 2012-04-25T11:45:00

This phenomenological study explored the experiences and needs of 11 individuals of the homeless population. Results revealed 5 themes: need for employment, perceptions of needs, perceptions of programs and shelters, coping mechanisms, and perceptions of treatment. Counseling implications for practice are discussed.

Journal Name: Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development

Tags: homeless

Association of childhood abuse with homeless women's social networks

2012-04-25T11:42:34

Journal Name: Child Abuse and Neglect

Summary of the State of Research on the Relationship Between Homelessness and Academic Achievement Among School-Aged Children and Youth

Bowman, Diana. ; Dukes, Christina. ; Moore, Jan. — 2012-04-25T11:35:55

The purpose of this publication is to provide an overview of research that studies the relationship between homelessness and academic achievement among school-aged children and youth in the United States. For readers interested in conducting research on the education of homeless children and youth, this publication (1) provides context on child, youth, and family homelessness from the late 1980s to the present; (2) summarizes policies and practices that link homeless children and youth to educational supports and services; (3) provides an overview of selected research studies that examine the relationship between homelessness and academic achievement; (4) describes commonly utilized methodologies and challenges in conducting research on homeless and highly mobile populations; and (5) offers direction for further research. The authors of this publication identified a set of 16 published articles dating from 1987 to 2011. Studies were selected on the basis of the following criteria: (1) homeless children or youth were the subjects examined; (2) the article described a formal research study with an articulated research question and methodology; (3) the research questions examined the relationship between homelessness and the educational success of homeless children and youth; and (4) the article was published in a peer-reviewed journal or referenced in an article in a peer-reviewed journal. While the selected studies do not constitute a comprehensive literature review, they nevertheless represent some of the most frequently cited studies in the field and provide a snapshot of approaches to examining the relationship between homelessness and academic achievement. In addition, the authors reviewed four articles that provided overviews of the state of research on homeless children, which cited many of the same studies that were reviewed in this publication (Buckner, 2008; Cunningham, Harwood, & Hall, 2010; Miller, 2011; Samuels, Shinn, & Buckner, 2010). These four articles provided historical perspectives on research on homeless children, including their educational outcomes, as well as summaries of findings in various studies and recommendations for further research. Homeless education is a relatively new field for research; as such, studies in this area are limited both in number and scope. Responding to the increased awareness of child and family homelessness that occurred in the 1980s, researchers primarily from the field of behavioral science began to conduct studies to describe a heretofore unexamined population – children and youth in homeless families. Studies attempted to describe this population, oftentimes in comparison with similar populations, such as housed children living in impoverished conditions. Studying highly mobile populations posed many challenges, resulting in most studies collecting data on families and children living in homeless shelters in urban areas. Many studies viewed homeless children or youth as a homogeneous population, with only a few recent studies attempting to identify subgroups within a sample of homeless children and youth. Questions in the research studies included in this review address ways in which homeless students are similar to or different from housed peers; describe relationships among homelessness, cognition, and academic achievement; and identify variables that are associated with adaptability. Conducting successful research on homeless students continues to be a moving target: Homeless children and families are highly mobile; changing economic climates impact the demographics and numbers of homeless children and families; and ever-evolving laws and policies result in significant changes in services over time. For these reasons, studies are very contextual and difficult to generalize beyond the sample, time, and setting studied.

Tags: homelessness

Implications of homelessness for parenting young children: A preliminary review from a developmental attachment perspective

David, H. Daryn. ; Gelberg, Lillian.; Suchman, E. Nancy. — 2012-04-25T11:34:09

Although it has been well-documented that parents and children who experience homelessness often have compromised health and well-being, few studies have examined the potential implications of homelessness on the process of parenting young children. In this review, we consider how parents of young children might function under the circumstances of homelessness. We begin with a brief overview of the psychological, social, and medical characteristics of homeless mothers and their young children. Using a developmental attachment perspective, we next briefly review the central tasks of parenting during the first 5 years of life, including emotion regulation and fostering of child autonomy, with an eye toward how homelessness may compromise a mother's ability to complete these tasks. Finally, we provide suggestions for further research that incorporate a developmental attachment perspective and other relevant viewpoints. Because of the paucity of research in this area, our review seeks to provide a heuristic framework for future research, intervention development, and policy.

Journal Name: Infant Mental Health Journal

Homelessness in Winnipeg Fact Sheet

2012-04-25T09:34:45

Organization: University of Winnipeg

Health Issues in the Homeless Youth Population

Beharry, M.S. — 2012-04-20T06:10:08

No abstract available.

Journal Name: Pediatric Annals

Tags: youth; healthcare; health issues; homeless youth

Integrated Programs for Mothers with Substance Abuse Issues: A Systematic Review of Studies Reporting On Parenting Outcomes

2012-04-20T06:08:01

As part of larger systematic review to examine the effectiveness of integrated programs for mothers with substance abuse issues, we performed a systematic review of studies published from 1990 to 2011 with data on parenting outcomes. (Authors)

Journal Name: Harm Reduction Journal

Tags: women; mothers; substance use; parenting; integrated programs

SAMHSA’s Homeless and Housing Resource Network: A Teleconference/Webinar for Grantees Blended Funding and Sustainability: Creating a Comprehensive Sustainability Plan

2012-04-20T09:51:20

This webinar will discuss an approach to sustainability planning that includes developing a comprehensive funding strategy and marketing the program to obtain agency-wide and community buy-in.

Organization: SAMHSA’s Homeless and Housing Resource Network

Tags: webinar; sustainability; funding

Injecting reason into the safe injection site debate

Spurr, Ben — 2012-04-19T12:36:18

A report released last week that recommended setting up supervised drug injection facilities here seems to have faded from the public discourse in a flash. While the Toronto And Ottawa Supervised Consumption Assessment (TOSCA) Study aimed to start a discussion about a harm reduction strategy for vulnerable cocaine and opiate addicts, there’s little indication that’s a conversation our leaders and law enforcers are prepared to have. The ink had barely dried on the four-year-long study, sponsored by St. Michael’s Hospital and U of T’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health, when key officials dismissed its findings out of hand. Despite the authors’ assertion that three T.O. safe injection sites would reduce overdose deaths and HIV and hepatitis C infections, Health Minister Deb Matthews quickly declared that the province has no intention of pursuing the matter at this time because “experts continue to be divided on [their] value.” Deputy mayor Doug Holyday didn’t waste any time either telling reporters he had “some doubts as to whether there is real benefit and whether you don’t just attract more problems,” and urged yet more study. And Chief Bill Blair chimed in that while Vancouver has had such a facility for some years, “issues have arisen there. I don’t know of any place in Toronto where [a site] couldn’t have a significant negative impact on communities.”

Journal Name: NOW Toronto

Sexual Health: The Role of Sexual Health Services Among Homeless Young Women Living in Toronto, Canada

Oliver, Vanessa.; Cheff, Rebecca. — 2012-04-18T01:07:49

Recent statistics indicate limited condom use, high STI (sexually transmitted infection) rates, and a general lack of knowledge about reproductive and sexual health among homeless youth. This research focuses on the experiences of homeless female and transgendered youth, providing an insider’s perspective on shaping sexual health interventions. This qualitative research is based on life history interviews and participant observation with eight homeless young women who reflect the diversity of the homeless population in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Their particularized sexual experiences and health-seeking behaviors illustrate the range of issues faced by this community, speaking to the efficacy of current health promotion strategies. Too often faced with judgmental health and social service providers who they perceive to undermine their agency and empowerment, these women highlight the challenges they face when seeking sexual and reproductive health services and information. In addition to speaking to the struggles and frustrations they face in regard to their sexual health and the services with which they choose to interact, the women provide suggestions for improved care. From these, the authors include key recommendations for the provision of culturally competent, sex-positive, and nonjudgmental health services with the hope that health practitioners and promoters can learn from these experiences, both positive and negative, when caring for and supporting young women living in exceptional circumstances.

Journal Name: Health Promotion Practice

Motivation to change and treatment attendance as predictors of alcohol-use outcomes among project-based Housing First residents

Collins, Susan E. ; Malone, Daniel K. ; Larimer, Mary E. — 2012-04-17T03:00:27

Collins et al. (2012) indicated that time spent in a project-based Housing First (HF) intervention was associated with improved two-year alcohol-use trajectories among chronically homeless individuals with alcohol problems. To explore potential correlates of these findings, we tested the relative prediction of alcohol-use outcomes by motivation to change (MTC) and substance abuse treatment attendance. Participants (N = 95) were chronically homeless individuals with alcohol problems receiving a project-based HF intervention in the context of a larger nonrandomized controlled trial (Larimer et al., 2009). Participants were interviewed regularly over the two-year follow-up. Treatment attendance and MTC were measured using items from the Addiction Severity Index and the SOCRATES, respectively. Alcohol-use outcomes included alcohol quantity, problems and dependence. Generalized estimating equation modeling indicated that MTC variables and not treatment attendance consistently predicted alcohol-use outcomes over the two-year follow-up. Findings suggest that the importance of motivation to change may outweigh treatment attendance in supporting alcohol behavior change in this population.

Journal Name: Addictive Behaviors

Telling stories: Exploring research storytelling as a meaningful approach to knowledge mobilization with Indigenous research collaborators and diverse audiences in community-based participatory research

Christensen, Julia — 2012-04-17T02:58:34

A growing number of geographers seek to communicate their research to audiences beyond the academy. Community-based and participatory action research models have been developed, in part, with this goal in mind. Yet despite many promising developments in the way research is conducted and disseminated, researchers continue to seek methods to better reflect the “culture and context” of the communities with whom they work. During my doctoral research on homelessness in the Northwest Territories, I encountered a significant disconnect between the emotive, personal narratives of homelessness that I was collecting and more conventional approaches to research dissemination. In search of a method of dissemination to engage more meaningfully with research collaborators as well as the broader public, I turned to my creative writing work. In this article, I draw from “The komatik lesson” to discuss my first effort at research storytelling. I suggest that research storytelling is particularly well suited to community-based participatory research, as we explore methods to present findings in ways that are more culturally appropriate to the communities in which the research takes place. This is especially so in collaborative research with Indigenous communities, where storytelling and knowledge sharing are often one and the same. However, I also discuss the ways in which combining my creative writing interests with my doctoral research has been an uneasy fit, forcing me to question how to tell a good story while giving due diligence to the role that academic research has played in its development. Drawing on the outcomes and challenges I encountered, I offer an understanding of what research storytelling is, and how it might be used to advance community-based participatory research with Indigenous communities.

Journal Name: The Canadian Geographer

Predictors of Health Services Utilization among Persons with Psychiatric Disabilities Engaged in Supported Independent Housing

Bressi Nath, Sara; Wong, Yin-Ling Irene; Marcus, Steven C.; Solomon, Phyllis — 2012-04-17T02:06:19

Objective: Persons with psychiatric disabilities are at greater risk for medical comorbidity, and prior research suggests these persons may underutilize health services. In response, this study examined the impact of engagement in psychiatric rehabilitation services, including case management, on utilization of general health services among persons with psychiatric disabilities engaged in supported housing, while controlling for demographic and clinical characteristics. Methods: Poisson regression analyses were used to examine the impact of socio-demographic, clinical, and service characteristics on reported utilization of general health services in the past year. Results: Findings indicated supported housing residents receiving case management coupled with weekly contact with residential support services visited a general health practitioner more frequently than those with less support services. Conclusions and Implications: Study results suggest psychiatric rehabilitation services provided to persons in the context of safe and affordable housing may represent an important mechanism for enabling persons with psychiatric disorders to access needed medical care.

Journal Name: Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal

Supportive measures, enabling restraint: governing homeless ‘street drinkers’ in Hamilton, Canada

Evans, Joshua — 2012-04-17T01:58:31

This paper uses a ‘grounded’ governmentality framework to examine the political and personal significance of a novel therapeutic intervention targeting chronically homeless individuals with severe alcohol problems. The paper is based on a qualitative case study of ‘Mountainview,’ a residential facility combining medical care and social services with an ‘alcohol management’ program. Drawing on the experiences of program staff and residents, as well as local policy discourses on homelessness, I explore the significance of this intervention in relation to geographies of inclusion and exclusion in the city. The paper traces how Mountainview encompasses novel forms of visualization, valuation, enclosure, and self-examination that together afford ‘street drinkers’ a new, albeit ambivalent, place in the city.

Journal Name: Social & Cultural Geography

The insufficiency of fairness: The logics of homeless service administration and resulting gaps in service

Wasserman, Jason Adam; Clair, Jeffrey Michael — 2012-04-17T01:56:01

This paper reports on discursive justifications of homeless service institutions in the USA, illustrating a conceptualization of service founded on economic logics of industry and the marketplace. Emerging from ethnographic data, we found that homeless service administrators utilized economic logics of justification to legitimize the exclusion of the street homeless by framing delivery within western notions of fair exchange and efficient production. When these logics are used exclusively to frame justifiable criteria for receiving services, certain people are empowered to participate in social welfare institutions, while others are disfranchised. We conclude that addressing gaps in service requires legitimizing varied administrative models, which, although underpinned by different, perhaps even oppositional, justifications, will engender a service sector responsive to the diversity of the homeless population.

Journal Name: Culture and Organization

Mental Health Services for Homeless: Patient Profile and Factors Associated with Suicide and Homicide

Dunne, E.; Duggan, M.; O'Mahony, J. — 2012-04-17T01:53:52

This study aimed to establish a profile of users of the mental health service for homeless in Cork, comparing this group with those attending a General Adult Service. The homeless group were significantly more likely to be male (89% v 46%), unemployed (96% v 68%), unmarried (98% v 75%) and under 65 (94% v 83%). Diagnostically, there was a significantly higher prevalence of schizophrenia (50% v 34%); personality disorder (37% v 11%) and substance dependence (74% v 19%) in the homeless service users. They were more likely to have a history of deliberate self harm (54% v 21%) and violence (48% v 10%). Severe mental illness has a high prevalence in the homeless population, with particularly high levels of factors associated with suicide and homicide. Poor compliance and complexity of illness lead to a requirement for significant input from multidisciplinary mental health teams members.

Journal Name: The Irish Medical Journal

Characteristics of Homeless Youth Who Use Cocaine and Methamphetamine

Nyamathi, Adeline; Hudson, Angela; Greengold, Barbara; Leake, Barbara — 2012-04-17T01:51:46

This cross-sectional hepatitis health promotion study (N = 156) was designed to identify correlates of cocaine and methamphetamine use among young, homeless persons living in Los Angeles County. Structured questionnaires were administered at baseline to assess sociodemographic characteristics, drug history, and social support. Unadjusted analysis showed that older age, having a history of incarceration, injection drug use (IDU), 10 or more sexual partners, and sex for money were associated with both cocaine and methamphetamine use. Logistic regression results showed that injection drug users had over seven times greater odds of using each stimulant compared with nonusers of injection drugs; those reporting at least 10 sexual partners and alcohol use in the past 6 months were more likely to use cocaine than their respective counterparts. African Americans were also less likely than Whites to report cocaine use. Understanding of these relationships can guide interventions targeting the multiple challenges faced by this population. (Am J Addict 2012;21:243–249)

Journal Name: The American Journal on Addictions

Re-conceptualising Approaches to Meeting the Health Needs of Homeless People

Anderson, Isobel; Ytrehus, Siri — 2012-04-17T01:48:34

The experience of homelessness not only affects physical health, but can also constrain access to required health care. In a number of European countries, national strategies to tackle homelessness have sought to deliver integrated solutions across housing, health and other social policy areas. This article examines approaches to meeting the health care needs of homeless people in relation to such strategies, drawing upon recent research in Norway and Scotland. The article presents a comparative analysis of approaches to service provision in relation to welfare models and the concepts of universal and specialist provision. The analysis suggests a cross-national shift in the conceptualisation of appropriate responses to the health care needs of those who experience homelessness. The provision of some specialist health services, while reflecting a selective model of welfare, need not be solely interpreted as conflicting with a more universal model of ensuring access to mainstream services. Rather, the challenge is to recognise the need for a process approach which supports an effective transition from the (sometimes necessary) use of specialist services for this group, towards (the ideal of) full integration into mainstream health care.

Journal Name: Journal of Social Policy

Keeping the Lights On: How Government Funding Concerns Drive the Advocacy Agendas of Nonprofit Homeless Service Providers

Mosley, Jennifer E. — 2012-04-17T01:45:56

Human service nonprofits have historically played an important role in advocating on behalf of the vulnerable populations that they serve. Growth in privatization has led many scholars and practitioners to wonder if increased dependence on government funds would compromise this role. The objective of this study is to explore the relationship between government funding and advocacy participation, goals, and tactics through a qualitative investigation of advocacy involvement in the field of homeless services. Results demonstrate that having government funding is associated with managers being highly motivated to participate in advocacy in the hopes of solidifying funding relationships. As a result, advocacy goals are focused primarily on brokering resources and promoting the organization rather than substantive policy change or client representation. Furthermore, in order to be perceived as a legitimate partner to government, organizations reject confrontational methods and advocate as insiders. Overall, these findings indicate perceptions about advocacy may need to shift as increased reliance on government funding has made advocacy participation and participation in collaborative governance virtually indistinguishable.

Journal Name: Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory

A disarmingly simple idea? Practical bottlenecks in the implementation of a universal basic income

De Wispelaere, Jurgen; Stirton, Lindsay — 2012-04-17T01:42:12

This article considers the implementation of a universal basic income, a neglected area in basic income research. We identify and examine three important practical bottlenecks that may prevent a basic income scheme from attaining the universal reach desired and proclaimed by its advocates: i) maintaining a population-wide cadaster of eligible claimants ensuring full takeup; ii) instituting robust modalities of payment that reach all intended beneficiaries; and iii) designing an effective oversight mechanism in a policy context that actively opposes client monitoring. We argue that the implementation of universal basic income faces unique challenges that its proponents must consider carefully.

Journal Name: International Social Security Review

Under Construction: How Narrative Elements Shape Qualitative Research

Holley, Karri; Colyar, Julia — 2012-04-17T01:39:51

This article considers how narrative constructs could be used to strengthen the writing process. The authors outline the narratological devices of plot, point of view, authorial distance, and character, and examine how these concepts can be used when writing with qualitative data. Narratological tools equip the researcher to selectively manage the presentation of data to tell an appropriate story. As part of the research process, scholars should consider what kind of story they seek to tell through the data.

Journal Name: Theory Into Practice - Special Issue: Qualitative Research in the 21st Century

The Poverty Series

2012-04-17T10:43:35

Poverty remains a fact of life for many people in Calgary who are struggling with inadequate incomes to meet their basic needs. Those living in poverty include working families, children, and seniors. When people lack the income necessary to meet their basic needs they are often forced to make difficult choices between things that most people take for granted. This can lead to compromising the amount or quality of food purchased, living in unhealthy or unsafe environments, or foregoing educational or other activities important for healthy living. For many, the result is reduced health, fewer opportunities to get involved in community life, or to benefit from activities that would improve their situation. In the most extreme cases, it results in reliance on food banks or in homelessness.

Organization: The City of Calgary, United Way of Calgary and Area and Vibrant Communities Calgary

Canadian Definition of Homelessness

2012-04-16T10:33:58

The Canadian Homelessness Research Network has developed a definition and typology of homelessness intended to improve understanding, measurement and responses to homelessness in Canada by providing a common ‘language’ for addressing this complex problem. Working in collaboration with national, regional and local stakeholders, including people with lived experience, we have developed a definition that draws on our shared history of attempting to define homelessness in Canada, but also on effective models from other jurisdictions (most particularly, the ETHOS definition from Europe). The result is a useable, understandable definition of homelessness that is uniquely Canadian yet allows for national and international comparison.

Organization: Canadian Homelessness Research Network (CHRN)

Housing and Addiction: Designing for the 'Hard to House' in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside

Sayed, Hassan Ali — 2012-04-12T04:40:25

The Downtown Eastside of Vancouver is one of the city’s oldest neighbourhoods and one of Canada’s poorest. Once home to city hall and a bustling entertainment district, this neighbourhood has slowly been overtaken by an open drug market. With many individuals in this area without permanent residence, temporary shelters have become a refuge for the homeless. As a response to the need for permanent housing in this area, this thesis explores the role of architecture in housing the homeless, specifically those who suffer from drug addiction. Building on precedents of mixed use affordable housing programs in Canada and the U.S., this project focuses on ways of facilitating services and activities that seek to improve the quality of life for the disenfranchised.

Cyber Behavior of Homeless Adolescents and Adults

Eyrich-Garg, Karin M. ; Rice, Eric — 2012-04-12T04:33:52

A common stereotype is that persons experiencing homelessness have no access to digital and Information Technology. Even if they could obtain access, they would not have the skills necessary to use it. In this entry, the authors examine the scientific literature focused on the Internet use of persons experiencing homelessness. Both homeless adolescents and adults use the Internet at public libraries, social service agencies, and via mobile phone. They use the Internet to obtain employment and housing, seek services, remain socially connected, and have fun. The Internet has enormous potential as a tool to improve the lives of persons experiencing homelessness in terms of social support, advocacy, connection to and rating of services, online education, online intervention scheduling, and online intervention delivery. This field is new, and its development should prove both exciting and vital for the assessment, research, and intervention of persons experiencing homelessness.

Journal Name: Encyclopedia of Cyber Behavior

Sexually Transmitted Infections Among Homeless Persons: A Literature Review

Bryant, Kenneth L.; Williams, Samantha — 2012-04-12T04:31:12

Background: Persons impacted by homelessness or housing instability often suffer from serious infectious and chronic conditions. Objectives: The systematic review examined the intersection between homelessness, STIs, risk factors, and existing prevention/intervention evidence. Methods: Peer reviewed articles (N=251) published 2000-2011 related to sexual health risk, outcomes and homelessness were identified. 77 articles met a five point criteria for inclusion. International studies and those without STI prevalence data for homeless persons were excluded for a final dataset of 34 articles. Dataset populations were: adolescents (n=10), women (n=9), men (n=1), nondescript adults (n=9), LGBT (n=4), and veterans (n=1). Descriptive and qualitative analyses included: STI prevalence ranges by population and factors associated with homelessness, sexual risk, prevention and treatment measures. Results: STI prevalence ranged 4.7% to 27%. STI risk factors across subgroups included: inconsistent condom use, survival sex, and substance use/abuse. In adolescents, STIs were higher among females; males were more likely to engage in anal and anonymous sex. LGBT persons had greater HIV risk, but were more likely to report being tested for STIs. Women were more likely to report risky sex in abusive relationships, have unrecognized HIV infection and recent STI diagnoses. Among men, risk behaviors were associated with homelessness severity and PTSD. A higher prevalence of HIV infection was reported for adults who participated in exchange sex (7.3% men; 9.1% women). Conclusions: STI infection among homeless persons is associated with unstable housing, high risk events, circumstances, and behavior. Housing and stability can reduce global risk reduction. Sexual health prevention interventions may enhance supportive housing and stabilization efforts. Implications for Programs, Policy, and Research: Enhancing sexual health within the context of homelessness should be better understood and translated into effective interventions programs that can reduce STI risk during various stages homelessness and housing re-stability.

Organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Toronto and Ottawa Supervised Consumption Assessment Study

2012-04-12T03:35:56

Do Toronto and Ottawa need supervised consumption facilities? Is the implementation of supervised consumption facilities in Toronto or Ottawa feasible? To answer these questions, we conducted the Toronto and Ottawa Supervised Consumption Assessment, a scientific study involving the collection and analysis of data from a variety of sources.

Organization: Toronto and Ottawa Supervised Consumption Assessment

A Plan, Not a Dream: How to End Homelessness in 10 Years

2012-04-11T02:17:18

The Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness has been formed to build a national movement to end homelessness from the community up. We believe we can end homelessness in Canada. We believe we can do it one person, village, town, city and province at a time. What’s needed is a Plan. There are plenty of people at the local level across Canada who have the knowledge and the expertise to get the job done. Everything you need to know to end homelessness is known in your communities or is available from others. There are many effective partnerships at the community level that engage government, non-profit agencies and private sector groups in innovative initiatives. And the financial resources exist. What’s missing is a practical, community-based approach that shifts the focus from managing homelessness to a system focused on ending it. We need to move from crisis responses (like shelters and soup kitchens) to solutions – permanent, appropriate, safe and affordable housing with the support necessary to sustain it. A Plan, Not a Dream: How to End Homelessness in 10 Years spells out how Canadian communities can end homelessness in 10 years or less by outlining the critical ingredients of a community-based 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness.

Organization: Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness

Impact of the Mental Healthcare Delivery System on California Emergency Departments

Stone, Ashley; Rogers, Debby; Kruckenberg, Sheree ; Lieser, Alexis — 2012-04-11T10:17:26

This is an observational study of emergency departments (ED) in California to identify factors related to the magnitude of ED utilization by patients with mental health needs. (Authors)

Journal Name: Western Journal of Emergency Medicine

Tags: obervational study; emergency department; mental health; mental health care; mental health care systems; emergency medical services

Good Practice in Mental Health Care for Socially Marginalised Groups in Europe: A Qualitative Study of Expert Views in 14 Countries

2012-04-11T10:14:34

This study explored the experiences and views of experts in 14 European countries regarding the mental health care for six socially marginalised groups: long-term unemployed; street sex workers; homeless; refugees/asylum seekers; irregular migrants and members of the travelling communities. (Authors)

Journal Name: BMC Public Health

Tags: good practices; health care systems; mental health care; autonomy; marginalisation; best practices; social marginalization

The Sustainability of New Programs and Innovations: A Review of the Empirical Literature and Recommendations for Future Research

2012-04-11T10:12:35

This paper reviews the methods that have been used, the types of outcomes that have been measured and reported, findings from studies that reported long-term implementation outcomes, and factors that have been identified as potential influences on the sustained use of new practices, programs, or interventions. (Authors)

Journal Name: Implementation Science

Tags: Evidence Based Practice; healthcare; sustainability ; literature review

Improving the Health of the Homeless: Advice for Physicians

Lipato, T. — 2012-04-11T10:00:46

Homeless individuals suffer from a constellation of health issues, experience barriers to medical care that are both recognizable and hidden, and score worse on measures of health outcomes than the general population. (Authors)

Journal Name: Minnesota Medicine

Tags: health issues; Medical Care; underserved populations; homeless health; physicians

How to House the Homeless- Book Review

Lamb, H. Richard — 2012-04-11T09:59:33

This is a review by Richard H. Lamb of the book "How to House the Homeless."

Organization: Psychiatric Services

Journal Name: Psychiatry Services

Tags: Review Literature

Pathways to Housing: A Response to Homelessness in Calgary

Halloway, D. — 2012-04-11T09:56:58

No abstract available.

Journal Name: The Canadian Nurse

Searching out Solutions: Constructive Alternatives to the Criminalization of Homelessness

United States Interagency Council on Homelessness — 2012-04-11T09:53:15

This report explores the themes and solutions that were identified at the Searching for Balance Summit. It also chronicles the experiences of several local communities in their endeavors to develop programs that treat individuals experiencing homelessness with dignity and respect, while simultaneously meeting the needs of community safety and maintaining civic order. (Authors)

Organization: United States Interagency Council on Homelessness

Tags: criminal activity; Safety; justice issues; keith gilabert, resources,

Study Protocol: A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Computer-Based Depression and Substance Abuse Intervention for People Attending Residential Substance Abuse Treatment

2012-04-11T09:52:07

A large proportion of people attending residential alcohol and other substance abuse treatment have a co-occurring mental illness. (Authors)

Journal Name: BMC Public Health

Tags: substance abuse treatment; alcohol treatment; co-occurring disorders; mental illness; computer

Cost-Effectiveness of Peer-Delivered Interventions for Cocaine and Alcohol Abuse among Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Ruger, Jennifer Prah; Abdallah, Arbi Ben ; Luekens, Craig ; Cottler, Linda — 2012-04-11T09:49:29

Over 9% of the total US population (23.1 million aged 12 or older) was in need of treatment for an illicit drug or alcohol use problem in 2008. Among females, the percentage of illicit drug users rose from 5.8% in 2007 to 6.8% in 2010; the number of users increased from 10.4% to 11.2% over the same period among males. (Authors)

Journal Name: PLoS ONE

Tags: women with substance abuse ; cost-effective; Controlled trial; Peer-based intervention; peer programs; alcohol and drug use; cocaine use

Tuberculosis Outbreak Associated With a Homeless Shelter - Kane County, Illinois, 2007-2011

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — 2012-04-11T09:46:36

Despite the overall decline in tuberculosis (TB) incidence in the United States to a record low, outbreaks of TB among homeless persons continue to challenge TB control efforts. In January 2010, public health officials recognized an outbreak of TB after three overnight guests at a homeless shelter in Illinois received diagnoses of TB disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates with matching genotype patterns. (Authors)

Journal Name: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

Tags: Tuberculosis; shelter; Disease Outbreaks

Dermatologic Care in the Homeless and Underserved Populations: Observations from the Venice Family Clinic

Grossberg, A.L.; Carranza, D.; Lamp, K.; Chiu, M.W.; Lee, C.; Craft, N. — 2012-04-11T09:45:03

Dermatologic care in the homeless and impoverished urban underserved populations is rarely described despite the wide prevalence of skin concerns in this population. Because the homeless population may be subject to increased sun exposure compared to the nonhomeless population, they also may be at increased risk for skin cancer. (Authors)

Journal Name: Cutaneous Medicine for the Practioner

Tags: underserved populations; cancer risk; Skin

Medication Reconciliation Campaign in a Clinic for Homeless Patients

2012-04-11T09:34:48

This commentary describes a brown-bag initiative designed to encourage medication reconciliation in a clinic serving homeless patients. (Authors)

Journal Name: American Journal of Health Systems Pharmacy

Tags: medication ; homeless patients ; reconciliation; clinics

Editorial: Meeting the Health Care Needs Associated With Poverty, Homelessness and Social Exclusion: The Need for an Interprofessional Approach

Cross, William; Hayter, M.; Cleary, M. ; Jackson, Debra — 2012-04-11T09:32:17

No abstract available.

Journal Name: Jornal of Clinical Nursing

Tags: health care; editorial; social exclusion

Frequent-User Patients: Reducing Costs While Making Appropriate Discharges

Fader, H. C.; Phillips, C. N. — 2012-04-11T09:14:45

Homeless patients who lack access to the health resources they need to maintain their health on their own pose a challenge for hospitals: Premature discharge of such patients can result in their being readmitted to the hospital in a short time, leading to higher costs for the hospital. (Authors)

Journal Name: Journal of the Healthcare Financial Management Association

Tags: health care access; discharge planning for the homeless; hospital admittance ; discharge planning

Gender and the Use of Veterans Health Administration Homeless Services Programs among Iraq/Afghanistan Veterans

Blackstock, O.J.; Haskell, S.G.; Brandt, C.A.; Desai, Rani A. — 2012-04-11T08:54:16

Female Veterans comprise 12% of Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) Veterans, the largest proportion of women to serve of any prior cohort. We sought to determine the sex-specific risk of using a Veterans Health Administration (VHA) homeless program among OEF/OIF Veterans and to identify factors associated with increased risk of program use for women compared with men. (Authors)

Journal Name: Medical Care

Tags: female veterans; Veterans of Iraq; Veterans of Afghanistan; veterans ; homeless veterans; Veterans Administration

2011 Survey of Non-Market Rental Housing in Calgary

Stoick, Sharon M.; Morgan, Karen; Mak, Renée — 2012-04-10T04:09:19

For Calgary City Council, “affordable housing adequately suits the needs of low- and moderate-income households at costs below those generally found in the Calgary market.” While The City of Calgary has had a Corporate Affordable Housing Strategy since 2002, detailed information on non-market housing stock in Calgary has not been available until now. Although five non-market housing ‘counts’ have been done since 2000, none collected specific information about the units that were counted. With the ongoing implementation of Calgary’s 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness, which focuses on ‘housing first,’ it has become even more imperative to monitor the state of non-market (subsidized) housing in the city. Therefore, in the summer and fall of 2011, The City of Calgary conducted a detailed survey of non-market rental housing in the city. A comprehensive survey was designed to identify a wide range of characteristics about non-market housing—beyond a simple count. The available data were analyzed in aggregate for the city as a whole, with tables and figures used to present the findings. In addition, 76 maps were created using three types of geospatial analysis to show non-market housing characteristics. In addition to city-wide summary maps, thematic maps were created to illustrate the relative distribution of non-market housing characteristics across two geographies—the nine ‘zones’ used by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) in its detailed yearly Rental Market Report and the eight ‘sectors’ used by The City of Calgary for planning and forecasting. The report is very large and includes numerous coloured figures and maps. Although a link to the full report is provided, the report is also divided into five sections so it can more easily be viewed and downloaded.

Organization: The City of Calgary

Student documentary provides platform to discuss homelessness

Young, Michael; Brown, Alicia — 2012-04-05T10:10:53

One traditional concept of grad school may suggest late nights poring over journals and books in the library, and months of developing a final dissertation. In York’s Faculty of Environmental Studies (FES), however, students have been known to shatter traditional stereotypes, which explain why Mike Yam’s grad student experience led him to make a movie about Toronto’s homeless. Unheard Voices is Yam’s 47-minute documentary that follows Toronto’s homeless through the urban landscape. The project was born out of a personal interest in social policy and homelessness, nurtured during Yam’s studies in the master’s in environmental studies (MES ’10) program. Yam says he aimed, through his film, to “raise awareness about the issue of homelessness and create empathy for the subjects. If [audiences] can empathize with the people in the film … it will hopefully get them to care about the issue.” Unheard Voices can now be viewed by anyone online at York’s Homeless Hub, where it is being hosted for free. The online availability follows a screening for the York community by the FES.

Journal Name: YFile

Client Access to Integrated Services and Information (CAISI)

2012-04-03T04:40:04

The Toronto Client Access to Integrated Services and Information (CAISI) Project aims to reduce the plight of chronic homelessness by enhancing the integration of care between agencies at the individual and population levels using an electronic information system. The project includes: 1) The development of the open source system software. 2) Building community and agency capacity in using the system to integrate care between agencies. At the individual level, the project includes the rapid assessment of clients, referral to appropriate shelters and agencies, managing waiting lists into services, support multi-agency case management ultimately leading to client placement into appropriate housing or community placement. At the population level, the project enhances the ability of the community to gather data that can be used by activists and decision makers to help effect positive social change leading to the end of chronic homelessness. That is, advocate for more affordable and supportive housing and more appropriate facilities (e.g. client centred harm reduction long term care programs) for clients the community currently finds difficulty caring for. The system is client centered, clients give access to agencies to enhance the integration of care they receive. Clients are helping inform how the system will function. The project is being developed by front line agencies to improve the care of their clients. The software is an enhancement and expansion of the OSCAR McMaster system, an open source Ministry of Health approved electronic medical record. It includes integration with major community IT networks among agencies caring for those who are homeless. These include shelters, drop in centres, outreach teams, hospitals, public health and Toronto ambulance. The approach is an 'open development' or 'just do it' approach with a release early and often philosophy. Users are co-developers who work with program developers and software programmers to make rapid improvements to the system on a real time basis. The software is open source meaning that it is owned by the community and can be freely downloaded and enhanced by anyone. For a brief handout that summarizes the project, please see our CAISI two page summary: CAISI Summary Document

Eighth Report Card on Ending Homelessness in Ottawa, Jan-Dec 2011

2012-04-03T03:38:43

“The first ever “A” ever was awarded for new affordable housing in the 2011. The total for 2011 was 739 comprised of 203 newly created units and 536 households helped with rent. The Alliance to End Homelessness (ATEH) gives an “A” when new affordable housing is provided for between 700-1,000 households, either through the building of new units or help with rent. The City of Ottawa is to be commended for quickly rolling out in 2011 its additional $14 million for the Housing and Homelessness Investment Plan. Part of that City spending accounted for 508 of the 536 households receiving assistance to pay rent. The City’s leadership demonstrates conclusively how targeted spending developed in consultation with community organizations can go beyond maintaining the level of homelessness and actually start moving towards ending it. In contrast, two of the three other areas ATEH measures received a failing grade of “F” and the third one a “D+”.”

Organization: Alliance to End Homelessness (ATEH)