Homelessness and Health

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Homelessness and Health

• University of Michigan Project H
• Lunch Talk, April 26th 2004

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Who Is Homeless?

• Chronic Homeless
• What we generally think of when we think of
  homelessness
• Families
• Families with children are the fastest growing
  segment of the homeless
• More than 600,000 American kids will sleep in a
  shelter tonight
• The average age of a homeless person 9 years
  old.

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Why are families homeless?

• They dont have enough money to afford housing!!
  
• There is an affordable housing shortage
  throughout the United States.
• The housing that does exist is very expensive.

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The High Cost of Housing

• An example Washtenaw County
• To afford a two-bedroom apartment in Washtenaw
  County, a family head must
• Earn 32,600 per year
• Make 15.67 an hour at 40 hours/week
• Work 122 hours/week at minimum wage!

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The reality

• 12 of all people in the United States live below
  the official poverty level
• Including 17 of children more than 12 MILLION
  kids!
• The poverty level is 15,260 for a family of
  three even at incomes significantly higher than
  this level, housing is not affordable

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Other factors contributing to homelessness in
some cases

• Substance Abuse
• Mental Illness
• Domestic Violence
• Family Strife
• Unemployment
• Disability

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Health and Homelessness

• The link between poverty and poorer health is
  well-established. There are also specific risks
  faced by homeless people.
• Homeless people are less likely to have a regular
  source of healthcare.

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Health and Homelessness Infectious Disease

• Crowded living arrangements with many other
  families means more bug sharing
• Homeless are at increased risk of
• Upper respiratory infections
• Acute otitis media
• Lice
• Scabies
• Others

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Homelessness and Health Mental Health
Development

• Estimates of percent of homeless people with
  mental illnesses are as high as 80-95
• Homeless and marginally housed kids may have
  higher rates of depression and behavior problems
• Homeless children are more likely to have
  developmental delays than their housed peers

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Homelessness and Health Nutrition

• Income is associated with obesity for all age
  groups
• Homeless face additional problems in access to
  nutritious food
• Homeless children and those in unaffordable
  housing situations have actually been shown to
  exhibit growth stunting due to malnutrition

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Homelessness and Health Dental Care

• Access to dental care is a huge problem
  Medicaid does not cover dental care for adults
• Nearly 50 of school-aged children have not seen
  a dentist in the previous year in one study
• 36 of homeless children have dental problems
  according to family surveys

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Homelessness and Health Child Asthma

• Asthma rates are increased for children living in
  poverty in general, including homeless children
• Associated with poor housing conditions
• Dust mites
• Cockroaches
• Molds
• Rodents
• URIs as a trigger (increased due to crowding)

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Conclusion

• Homelessness is extremely prevalent
• Homeless people face unique challenges to their
  health
• What does this mean for you?
• Be aware of peoples housing status and
  associated risk factors
• Alter your plan of care to be realistic given
  peoples living situation

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For more information

• This presentation and citations are available at
  www.umich.edu/projectH
• You can also find links to other resources there!
  

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Citations

• Who is Homeless?
• Homes for the Homeless and the Institute for
  Children and Poverty. Facts About Homelessness.
  www.homesforthehomeless.org
• www.alphahouse-ihn.org
• The High Cost of Housing
• Affordable rent set by U.S. HUD. Calculations
  compiled by National Low Income Housing
  Coalition, Out of Reach 2003
• Poverty statistics
• U.S. Census, 2002
• Health and Homelessness
• Karr, Catherine. Homeless Children What Every
  Health Care Provider Should Know. Compilation
  of many various studies. Available at
  www.nhchc.org/children