Homeless Veterans Of Fayetteville Arkansas Needs Assessment

Facts: Roughly 56 percent of all homeless veterans are African American or Hispanic, despite only accounting for 12.8 percent and 15.4 percent of the U.S. population respectively

A struggle for veterans was finding employment after completing the service so many veterans had problems with conforming to civilian from transitioning out the military. The unemployment rate for all U.S. veterans was 6.9 percent←;→ however, for those who had served since September 11 it rest at 10 percent. 13 percent of the veterans in the U.S. population were homeless, another 1.4 million veterans were at the endangered of homelessness. The source for vets that unfortunately discovery themselves in this position of being homeless lack of employment, poverty, housing shortages, low wages with adding drug abuse, alcohol, physical mental illness these problems can leave a veteran out in the streets (Hoffer, Elizabeth. F., Dekle, Judith. Ward., & Sheets, Carol., 2014).

In the US homeless population, veterans are slightly overrepresented (Tsai & Rosenheck, 2015). To be exact, veterans constitute 12.3% of all homeless adults (Tsai & Rosenheck, 2015). A study by Harpaz-Rotem, Rosenheck, & Desai (2011) also affirms that roughly 30% are homeless men and 4% are homeless women. By definition, homelessness is not having “a regular or fixed night-time residence,” and homeless people tend to move frequently, stay in homeless shelters, and sleep in places such as vehicles and abandoned buildings (Tsai & Rosenheck, 2015, p. 1). With this in mind, it is important to note that homeless veterans are mostly older males who some form of health insurance coverage than other homeless adults, better educated, and have been married or married (Tsai & Rosenheck, 2015). One would think that these advantages should put veterans at lower risk for homelessness, but this was not the case (Tsai & Rosenheck, 2015). Additionally, a study done by van den Berk-Clark & McGuire (2013) portrays that elderly civilians were less likely to become homeless in comparison to elderly veterans (aged from 51 to 61 years (39%) and 62 years or older (9%)) who were twice as likely to become homeless. Risk factors that can potentially explain homelessness among elderly veterans include life events (e.g., death of spouse or marital breakdown, exiting employment, and evictions), mental illness or medical conditions, minority status, and higher levels of disruptive events during childhood

The homeless veteran seem to be an extensive risk of a poor quality life because of stress, depression , nervous social relationships, poor accessibility to health care coupled with transient living situations. Almost half of homeless veterans' population experiences mental illness with a large percentage addicted to alcohol and drugs. Half of homeless veterans were in the Vietnam War, which is a pointer to the ages of the chronic veterans who are homeless to be 55 and 70 (Sweet, 2007). The group faces typical mental, physical ailments and malnutrition associated with insufficient self-care and basic needs fulfillment. The chronic diseases and infections among the homeless veterans are also linked to aging.

The majority of homeless veterans have service connected disabilities that are a direct result of military service; this contributes to a high risk of homelessness among veterans. Unique military skills that are non-essential in the civilian sector, combat related health issues, fractured family relationships and the lack of affordable housing are other factors. Many of them lack a social support network and/or someone to assist them with getting assistance from the government. They may be unaware of the different services they require and are

In America today, there are between 2.3 and 3.5 million people experiencing homelessness, and nearly one-quarter of all homeless adults have served in the armed forces. There are about 200,000 veterans experiencing homelessness on any given night. Considering that this number is so large, there should be several federal agencies helping, but there is not. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is the only agency that works to resolve the issue of homeless veterans.

“It’s like the path of least resistance... After a while, your self esteem gets really low and you don’t feel competitive any longer… Like you are already defeated.” (Applewhite ¶ 17). A quote from a homeless veteran shows how even though he has tried to relieve himself of the homelessness, it does not always end with the outcome that he wants, which leaves him feeling defeated, as well as thousands of others. About ⅓ of the homeless population are veterans, and they are usually the ones that need the most help (VA Expands Partnerships ¶5). The struggle that homeless veterans face everyday in the United States is a growing problem that needs to be fixed because it will continue to get worse. The healthy and productive success of

Imagine one making a huge decision to leave family, friends, and a familiar lifestyle to go serve and protect their country for months or years at a time. Imagine one risking their life and putting forth their time just to come back to no home, money, or health care while have developed a mental illness. The government promises all of these benefits one may never see and they end up on the streets without a home finding ways to cope which may lead to addiction. A study shows that “There are estimated to be about 50,000 homeless veterans on any given night with about 1.4 million others at risk of becoming homeless, the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans said, citing government statistics” (Shaw). Many of America’s homeless veterans have served in World War II, the Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam War, and many other wars. Nearly half of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam era. Two-thirds served their country for at least three years, and one-third were stationed in a war zone. Homeless veterans all across America come from different backgrounds and homelessness does not discriminate against gender. These veterans, including males and females, suffer from homelessness due to: being unemployable; suffering economic hardships; battling substance abuse, and lacking proper legal aid. Yes, there are plenty of resources out there to assist the homeless veterans that may help some but there are still too many veterans living on the streets.

In spite of having many advantages, veterans over-represent in the homeless population. The question “Why?” begs an answer. Forty years have passed since the Vietnam Conflict ended and homeless veterans became a representative image in American society. Surprisingly, it appears there are no studies on the factors contributing

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing services to 8.9 million Veterans each year (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2016). A significant amount of these Veterans are considered homeless or at risk for homelessness. Homelessness is a complex problem whose solution requires more than simply a roof and a bed. Sadly, along with homelessness, a great portion of homeless Veterans struggle with many other issues regarding their physical and mental health, as well as substance abuse issues. Although, during the last decade, the Department of Veterans Affairs has made great strides in improving policy for processes and procedures to ensure that these Veterans receive

According to the 2012 Annual Homeless Assessment Report released by the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), an estimated 62,619 veterans were homeless on any given night in 2012. The good news is that the estimate represents a 7.2 percent decline from the 2011 estimate and a 17.2 percent decline compared to the 2009 estimate ("Veterans," 2013). Although progress is being made, there is much to be done. There are veterans with the same needs as the general homeless population, but also veterans with severe physical and mental health disabilities, related to their service, that necessitate permanent housing with supportive services.

Every year the United States of America send a total number of 22.7 million men and women over the age of 17 overseas to fight for the protection of the country (Veteran Affairs, www.va.gov). That is 22.7 million sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, and other extended family members. When their service is complete many of these war veterans return home to their families, but some have no families to return too. On any given night, there are over 107 thousand veterans sleeping homeless on the streets of America; hungry, thirsty and without shelter (Veteran Affairs, www.va.gov). That is not say that the men and women who have families are safe from homelessness. A majority of the homeless veteran population comes from people who

Homelessness is the lack of acute housing or any form of accommodation, which have not only affected ordinary civilians, but has become a huge problem for the men and women who put their live on the line to protect the United States. Despite the endeavor made by the government, it has failed on it social, economic, and medical reform. There should take a more aggressive approach to spot resources to veterans experiencing homelessness; else the situation will continue to grow.

In addition, the veterans that risk their life for the American system make up a certain percentage of homeless people. According to The Department of Housing and Urban Development, “there were 57,849 homeless veterans on a single night in January 2013. Sixty percent were located in shelters or transitional housing programs, and 40 percent were in unsheltered locations. Just under 8 percent (4,456) were female“(Cortes et al., 2013). Many of them travel to serve and protect and come back to nothing, but the streets. While there are

There is a misinformed stigma of homelessness, which is that all homeless persons are in their situation because of substance abuse - or this is at least, in part, why they are unable to overcome homelessness, and that all homeless persons are unemployed. While mental illness and chronic substance abuse are the most common disabilities within homeless communities (Schutt, 2009) they are not the only factors as to why an individual may become homeless. As mentioned above, personal traumas, health problems, unhealthy relationships and lack of employment can lead to homelessness. An alarming amount of veterans are now homeless due to coming home