I oversee the delivery of care in a community hospital and see a breadth of individuals daily. Some receive outpatient services, diagnostic testing such as laboratory or x-ray, whilst others are in crisis due to a medical or mental health condition. Most can be discharged safely from our Urgent Care. However, discharging someone back to their home when they haven’t one to return too is problematic for staff and the individual. We routinely hold patients overnight during winter months to ensure their safety; Temperatures can plummet to below minus 40 Celcius for days and or weeks.
Homelessness has been and will continue to be crisis for many individuals and families. Gaetz, Gulliver and Richter (2014) estimate over 235,000 Canadians will be homeless each year, women and Indigenous Peoples encompass over 50% of this vulnerable group. Ramsey et al. (2019) conducted a qualitative study within the Niagara region after identifying a higher rate of poverty compared to other jurisdictions within Ontario and Canada. They identified numerous barriers including access to primary health care practitioners, lack of trust with the healthcare system and or government services and inadequacy of psychiatric services. Over 50% of participants self-identified experiencing a mental health issue, 36% reported difficulty with addictions. Lauber, Lay and Rossler (2006) identify a higher rate of mortality for those experiencing chronic mental health illness(s).
What can be done to end homelessness? Gaetz, Gulliver and Richter (2014) recommend 8 interventions including renewal of the Homelessness Partnering Strategy (NPS) and investment in affordable housing options for Indigenous Peoples to name but a few. In 2018, the government of Canada announced a goal to “reduce chronic homelessness by 50% over the next 10 years through its strategy titled “Reaching Home” (GoC, 2020). This is a great addition for Canadians experiencing homelessness with hopes of providing 100,000 new houses and 300,000 repaired or renewed option. Unfortunately, healthy inequities need the same level of commitment from provincial and federal governments in order to prevent homelessness in the first place.
References
Gaetz, S., Gulliver, T., & Richter, T. (2014). The state of homelessness in Canada 2014. Canadian Homelessness Research Network. Retrieved April 5, 2021 from: https://homelesshub.ca/sites/default/files/SOHC16_final_20Oct2016.pdf
Government of Canada. (2020). Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy. Retrieved April 5, 2021 from: https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/news/2018/06/reaching-home-canadas-homelessness-strategy.html
Lauber, C., Lay, B., & Rössler, W. (2006). Homeless people at disadvantage in mental health services. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 256(3), 138-145.
Ramsay, N., Hossain, R., Moore, M., Milo, M., & Brown, A. (2019). Health care while homeless: barriers, facilitators, and the lived experiences of homeless individuals accessing health care in a Canadian regional municipality. Qualitative health research, 29(13), 1839-1849.
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