Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Social Inclusion For Women Experiencing Homelessness, Jenna Richards

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Background: People experiencing homelessness have been described as one of the most socially excluded groups in society due to their inequitable access to basic necessities (Everett 2009; Labonte, 2004). Particular consideration regarding social inclusion should be given to the unique vulnerabilities of sub-populations of those experiencing homelessness, such as women (Wesely & Wright, 2005) due to their increased rates of ‘hidden homelessness’ (Walsh et al., 2009) and experiences of violence and discrimination (Roschelle, 2017; Weiser et al., 2009). Community participation, particularly sports activities, have been cited as one method towards increasing social inclusion among people experiencing homelessness. However, differential access …

Gender And Experiences Of Family Homelessness, Fawziah Almalki

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

BACKGROUND: Family homelessness is a growing issue in Canada. Families have been reported as the most rapidly increasing population of emergency shelter users. The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences of family homelessness in A mid-sized Canadian city and, in particular, the role that gender plays in these experiences.

METHODS: This project was a secondary analysis situated within a critical theoretical perspective. The data for this study, consisting of 4 focus groups, 36 family member participants interviews, and 10 shelter staff members interviews, was extracted from a primary study that focused on diversion from family homelessness. Qualitative …

Exploring Harm Reduction Among Canadian Veterans Experiencing Homelessness, Olivia Marsella

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

BACKGROUND: The use of substances is substantially higher among people experiencing homelessness than the general population (Podymow, Turnbull, Coyle, Yetisir, & Wells, 2006). In Canada, veteran homelessness is an increasing concern and it is estimated that there are 2,950 veterans experiencing homelessness (Gaetz et al., 2016). Furthermore, veterans often use substances, particularly alcohol, to cope with the transition from the military to civilian life (Ray & Forchuk, 2011). A strategy that has been shown to reduce the negative harms of substance use and facilitate housing stability is harm reduction (MacNeil & Pauly, 2010). Exploring how veterans who have experienced homelessness …

Open Space, Thin Blankets, And Snores: An Examination Of Sleep In Young Adults Experiencing Homelessness, Claire Olivia Moore

Honors Projects

Sleep has been identified as a public health concern, especially among college students and young adults, which are defined here as adults ages 18-25 years old. Individuals who are homeless also face specific challenges to getting high quality, restful sleep. The purpose of this review is to investigate the potential health burden of impaired sleep quality in young adults experiencing homelessness. The Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Ebscohost, Medline, Google Scholar, and PsychInfo databases were searched using the following terms independently and in combination: sleep, sleep quality, young adults, college students, emerging adults, sleep hygiene, homeless, …

A Journey Through Homelessness: A Photovoice Project With Youth Experiencing Homelessness In Minnesota, Bonnie D. Paulsen

Theses and Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to conduct a photovoice project with youth experiencing homelessness who frequent a drop-in center in the Midwest. Youth experiencing homelessness are a marginalized population whose numbers continue to grow. Photovoice is a method by which marginalized populations have an opportunity to express their lived experiences through photographs and what those photographs mean to them. Four youth from the drop-in center in the Midwest participated in the photovoice project. The youths were given cameras and instructions to take photographs of three broad areas: what homelessness means to them, their dreams for their futures and how …

Nurse-Led Primary Health Care For Homeless Men: A Multimethods Descriptive Study, Michael A. Roche, Christine M. Duffield, Judith Smith, Dana A. Kelly, Robyn Cook, Jen M. Bichel-Findlay, Carla Saunders, David J. Carter

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Aim: To explore the primary healthcare needs and health service use of homeless men in inner Sydney. Background: People experiencing homelessness have greater health needs than the general population and place high demands on tertiary care, which is expensive and may not be the optimum service for their needs. Accessible, approachable and affordable primary healthcare services could improve the health of homeless persons and potentially decrease costs to the healthcare system. Methods: A multimethod design using a cross-sectional survey (n = 40) and administrative data (n = 2 707 daily summaries) collected from a nurse-led primary healthcare clinic for homeless …

Broadening Practice Perspective By Engaging In Academic-Practice Collaboration: A Faith Community Nursing Exemplar., Andra Opalinski, Susan M. Dyess, Nancy Stein, Kim Saiswick, Valerie Fox

International Journal of Faith Community Nursing

Opportunities to positively impact health outcomes within faith community nursing (FCN) abound. Leaders of FCN can broaden their perspectives and engage academic-practice collaboration (APC) as a method to enhance care delivery, conduct research, and advance the evidence base for FCN. This paper shares a unique FCN exemplar created and actualized from the context of an APC initiative. The population focus in the exemplar is a group of persons experiencing homelessness.

Mammography Utilization In African American Women, April D. Kidd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: Breast cancer presents differently among women causing breast cancer health disparities with women of color disproportionally shouldering later-stage screening, incidence, and treatment, and greater mortality. This study assessed 10 predictors and rates of recent and long-term mammography utilization for women 43-79 years of age to better understand differences among age strata and races. This was the first study to use both the calculated Gail Risk scores (calculates absolute breast cancer risk over time intervals) from the 2010 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) and a temporary homelessness variable in predicting mammography utilization using national-level data.

Theoretical Framework: A modified Behavioral …

Interventions To Increase Vaccination Rates In Homeless Adults Aged 50 Years And Older In A Shelter-Based Clinic, Rubeena Smith

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Pronounced disparities in adult immunizations exist across the country. In homeless adults over 50 years of age with chronic diseases, coverage rates for influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations falls at 30% as compared to the 60% coverage rate found in the general public. Hepatitis B immunization rates are also significantly lower in the elderly homeless population. Increased prevalence of chronic diseases in the elderly homeless shelter residents’ increase their risk for severe complications following influenza, hepatitis B and meningococcal infections. To prevent disease epidemics and further disability in the homeless population, the need for appropriate and timely vaccinations is critical. Attitudes …

The Relationship Between Elements Of Health And Social Systems And Substance Use Severity For Individuals Experiencing Homelessness, Sommer Froats

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Canadians experiencing homelessness often live with severe substance use (Aubry et al., 2015; Khandor & Mason, 2007). Health challenges related to severe substance use contribute to the early mortality experienced by homeless Canadians (Hwang, Wilkins, Tjepkema, O’Campo & Dunn, 2009). This population also experience health and social system disadvantages. Using General Systems Theory, relationships between substance use severity and access to health care, housing stability, therapeutic relationship and quality of family and friends relationships were explored as elements of health and social systems. A correlational secondary analysis examined this in a sample of 65 individuals accessing housing first. Relationships were …

Mothers Experiencing Homelessness: Social Exclusion, Resistance, And Health, Sarah Benbow

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Background and Purpose: Mothers experiencing homelessness in Canada are faced with unique challenges in achieving health. The purpose of this two-phase study was to critically examine the socio-political context, health needs, exclusionary and inclusionary forces, and strategies of resistance demonstrated by mothers experiencing homelessness.

Methodology: This study falls under the critical paradigm informed by the theoretical perspective of intersectionality. Methodologies employed included critical narrative and critical discourse analysis. Data were collected at various homeless shelters and programs that provide services for women and mothers who are homeless in Southern Ontario. A purposive sample of women experiencing homelessness, and service …

Comparison Of Housed And Homeless Patients With An Orthopedic Diagnosis, Susan M. Williams

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Studies on homelessness have shown that people who are homeless are admitted to hospital more frequently, for longer periods of time, and at a younger age than people who are housed. Once admitted to hospital, discharge planning is difficult and resource intensive, often leading to discharge back to the streets or a shelter. This puts this population at risk for complications and readmission. Although people who are homeless are prone to orthopedic injuries, there is no research on the outcomes of patients who are homeless with orthopedic injuries. This retrospective, case control study, based on the social determinants of health, …

Homeless For One Winter Night: A Nursing Student's Perspective, Hannah Alewett

A with Honors Projects

For an A with Honors project for Parkland College, the student reflects on her overnight volunteer experience with CU@Home's One Winter Night, an event to raise funds for the cause of homelessness. As a nursing student, the author also reflects on homelessness from a health care perspective.

The Lived Experience Of Transitioning From The Foster Care System To Adulthood, Carla Renee Parker

Doctoral Dissertations

Approximately 408,000 children were in foster care in the United States at the end of fiscal year 2010 (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2012). Some children return to their families of origin; however, some children remain in the foster care system until they reach age 18 or 21 and must leave, which is called “emancipation” or “aging out” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2012). Transitioning foster youth are at risk for many negative consequences including poverty and homelessness. These negative consequences are associated with significant health implications, such as mental health problems and risky sexual behaviors. …

Feeding The Homeless Through Collaboration: A Proposal For Consideration, Valetta M. Johnson Massaquoi

Theses and Graduate Projects

The homeless are faced with many challenges of adverse nutritional deficiencies that predispose them to several illnesses commonly associated with the lack of adequate nutrition and the frequent utilizations of health care resources. Provision of nutritious food for the homeless can help decrease the prevalence of these identifiable markers and can be accomplished by u collaborative effort. The purpose of this project is to describe a collaboration between Regions Hospital and the Dorothy Day Center to provide supplemental nutrition for the homeless. Leininger's culture care diversity and universality theory along with culture care accommodation/negotiation are used as a theoretical framework …

Rethinking Notions Of Diversity In The Context Of Homelessness, Rick Csiernik, Carolyne Gorlick, Helene Berman, Cheryl Forchuk, Susan Ray, Elsabeth Jensen, Libbey Joplin

Rick Csiernik

No abstract provided.

Developing And Testing An Intervention To Prevent Homelessness Among Individuals Discharged From Psychiatric Wards To Shelters And ‘No Fixed Address’, Cheryl Forchuk, S. Macclure, M. Van Beers, C. Smith, Rick Csiernik, J. Hoch, E. Jensen

Rick Csiernik

Shelter data in a recent study revealed discharges from psychiatric facilities to shelters or the street occurred at least 194 times in 2002 in London, Ontario, Canada. This problem must be addressed to reduce the disastrous effects of such discharge, including re-hospitalization and prolonged homelessness. An intervention was developed and tested to prevent homelessness associated with discharge directly to no fixed address. A total of 14 participants at-risk of being discharged without housing were enrolled, with half randomized into the intervention group. The intervention group was provided with immediate assistance in accessing housing and assistance in paying their first and …

Gaining Ground, Losing Ground: The Paradoxes Of Rural Homelessness, Cheryl Forchuk, Phyllis Montgomery, Helene Berman, Catherine Ward-Griffin, Rick Csiernik, Carolyn Gorlick, Elsabeth Jensen, Patrick Riesterer

Rick Csiernik

The study examined rural housing and homelessness issues and looked at similarities and differences between rural and urban areas. It involved a secondary analysis of focus group data collected in a 2001-06 Community University Research Alliance study of mental health and housing. The findings highlight concerns regarding the lack of services, which can precipitate a move from a rural to an urban community. Inadequate transportation services often posed a challenge to rural residents attempting to access services. Many participants preferred rural living but felt they had to choose between residing where they wanted to and having access to essential services. …

Client-Provider Relationships In A Community Health Clinic For People Experiencing Homelessness: A Critical Ethnography, Abram Oudshoorn

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

People who are experiencing homelessness have the highest rates of morbidity, and the lowest age of mortality in Canada. The importance of health care relationships in addressing the needs of people who are experiencing homelessness has been demonstrated. However, two gaps still exist in the literature. Firstly, the dialectical relationship between space/place and social relations has been neglected in the context of health care and homelessness. Secondly, there is a dearth of research on the role of formal and informal policies on the enactment of client-provider relationships in this context. Therefore, in this study three research questions are addressed: 1) …

Study Of Stress, Housing Program Use, And Nursing Usage Among Homeless In Chicago, Henry Christian Cheung

Dissertations

Homelessness places people at risk of stressors that translate into stress and subsequently affect their health. Using Neuman Systems Model as a framework to identify modalities for nursing intervention among stressors and health problems of homeless people, this study compared stress levels among homeless people from three different homeless housing program types, investigated variables that predict the presence of stress among homeless, identified the degree of self-reported contact homeless people had with nurses, and measured to what extent nurses are preferred as health care providers by homeless people. This was accomplished through a cross-sectional, secondary data analysis of data from …

Families Moving Forward: Homeless Women With Children Transitioning To Independent Living, Kristin Elizabeth Hoyt Phd

Dissertations

Family homelessness is one of the most profound and disturbing social problems of the 21st century and is projected to remain an ongoing issue for the United States in upcoming years. The fastest growing segment in the homeless population continues to be families, specifically single women with children. One intervention to the problem of homeless women with children is by providing them with transitional housing, a step beyond the familiar short-term emergency shelter. Transitional housing typically shelters families for up to 2 years. During this extended stay, women participate in programs designed to assist them with addiction, mental health, domestic …

Homeless Mothers' Perceptions Of Parenting In Shelters, Sarah E. Young Whitaker Dnsc, Msn, Rn

Dissertations

Descriptions of parenting in a homeless shelter were obtained from nine single mothers housed in one of two shelters in a major southwestern border metroplex. Case study methodology was used to obtain their perspectives on parenting in this unique context. Content analysis was used to organize and analyze emerging themes. Major themes that emerged from the study were (a) a lack of autonomy, (b) gaining access to material resources, (c) lack of privacy, (d) constant change and insecurity in the environment, (e) differing values, and (e) psychosocial support.

Access To Care: A Hospice Model Of Access To Care For The Homeless, Mary Ann Bridget Kinney

Theses and Graduate Projects

Access to Hospice for the terminally ill patient is a monumental problem for the disenfranchised person. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) in Washington D.C. there is an estimate of 3.5 million people who experience homelessness in a year (2003). The homeless face many health care service gaps including the vital service of end- of- life nursing care, which allows for death with dignity. The following paper will discuss the author's experience with the homeless, the need of access to Hospice Care for the homeless, and a review of literature regarding access to Hospice for the homeless. …

Crossing The Line: Experiences Of The Formerly Homeless Living Past Homelessness, Susan Marie Bennett Dnsc, Msn, Fnp, Rn, Cs

Dissertations

This grounded theory study explored the experiences of formerly homeless individuals and families who have moved from homelessness into stable housing. This was an ethnographic study and involved the researcher staying in an east coast shelter where some of the formerly homeless participants had become staff members and reside. Data analysis was informed by dimensional analysis. Moving out of homelessness was the studies perspective. Findings of the study revealed the following dimensions that related the formerly homeless's experiences: (a)reacting to circumstances, or how they became homeless; (b)surviving as homeless, or how they lived while homeless; (c)crossing the fine, or what …