BACKGROUND The impact of mental disorders among homeless people is likely to be substantial in low income countries because of underdeveloped social welfare and health systems. As a first step towards advocacy and provision of care, we conducted a study to determine the burden of psychotic disorders and associated unmet needs, as well as the prevalence of mental distress, suicidality, and alcoh...

Homeless people are, by definition, isolated from mainstream society. They lack stable housing, and often lack connections with jobs, families, and communities. This paper summarizes what we know about reconnecting homeless people and individuals into the community and in turn fostering self-sufficiency, including improving their residential stability and employability, and reuniting them with ...

OBJECTIVE To assess the association between nutrition and health in an adult urban homeless population. DESIGN Cross-sectional--nutritional state (body mass index (BMI), triceps skinfold (TSF), upper arm circumference), dietary habits (food frequency), socio-demographic data and self-stated diseases were assessed. SETTING Four sites for homeless people in Kiel and Hamburg, Germany. SUBJEC...

OBJECTIVE To provide new evidence regarding the suitability of using quality of life (QoL) measurements in homeless people with schizophrenia, we assess the acceptability and psychometric properties of a specific QoL instrument (S-QoL 18) in a population of homeless people with schizophrenia, and we compare their QoL levels with those observed in non-homeless people with schizophrenia. METHOD...

Little is known about the impact of hurricanes on people who are homeless at the time a disaster occurs. Although researchers have extensively studied the psychosocial consequences of disaster produced homelessness on the general population, efforts focused on understanding how homeless people fare have been limited to a few media reports and the gray literature. In the event of a hurricane, ho...

OBJECTIVE To compare the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS), the US Food Security Survey Module (US FSSM) and a modified version of the US FSSM in which references to buying food were changed to references to getting food, in terms of their classification of food security levels among homeless individuals, and to determine which of these instruments was most preferred by homeless in...

BACKGROUND Data on mortality among homeless people are limited. Therefore, this study aimed to describe mortality patterns within a cohort of homeless adults in Rotterdam (the Netherlands) and to assess excess mortality as compared to the general population in that city. METHODS Based on 10-year follow-up of homeless adults aged ≥ 20 years who visited services for homeless people in Rotterdam...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the association between the economic recession and the detection of advanced cases of pulmonary tuberculosis in Osaka city from 2007 to 2009. DESIGN A repeated cross-sectional study. SETTING Osaka city has been the highest tuberculosis burden area in Japan. After the previous global financial crisis, the unemployment rate in Osaka prefecture has deteriorated from 5....

Resources listed herein are a selection of materials available on this topic. Many are available from your local library or inter-library loan. Unless otherwise noted, all other materials are available from the National Resource Center on Homelessness and Mental Illness. Photocopying charges are $.10 per page; make checks payable to Policy Research Associates, Inc. If you have difficulty locati...