Social Determinant Of Health Essay

“Today … there is a growing crisis of women’s homelessness across Canada. The Canadian government has failed to explore the causes of women’s homelessness” (Rahder, 2006, p.38). This growing issue is caused by societies carelessness on the homelessness issue, and the lack of support to change it. Even the Canadian government does not see it as an urgent issue to address because, as stated above, they have even failed to

Homelessness is often accompanied by many other problems such as mental disorders, substance abuse issues, isolation from family and friends, and poor general health. Often time’s people that suffer from homelessness experience a lower quality of life than those who have a place to call home.

Homelessness has been a problem for many years in the United States. This misfortune is becoming even a bigger issue due to people losing jobs and having no income. Not having any type of income leads to neglect in the way of just trying to survive. One issue that homeless individuals neglect is their health care. In this literature review, the main theme centers on how vulnerable this population is to not receiving adequate health care. “Meeting the needs of the homeless requires a different approach than that of the general population, thus healthcare providers must be aware of these needs and learn how to facilitate and improve care for homeless individuals” (Seiler & Moss, 2012, p. 305). The homeless population is a group that is sometimes stereotyped for their homeless situation; however, many are in an unfortunate situation that was not chosen by

Homelessness is a condition of people who lack regular access to adequate housing. As this condition becomes a growing problem in Canada people are forced to deal with the issues. Who are the homeless? They range from children to adults and even in some cases, families. Why are they homeless? Poverty, lack of jobs or well paying jobs, decline in Social Services, domestic violence, mental illness, and chemical dependency contribute to the majority of the homeless within our society. What effects does being homeless have on members of the family? It contributes to many physical and mental health problems for both parents and their children. Homelessness is a world-wide issue, yet zeroing in on Canada, the majority of the homeless live on the

There are currently 564,708 homeless individuals in the United States (U.S.), however this is just an estimate as there are probably hundreds that go uncounted, during PIT (point-in-time count) or remain unregistered with non-profit agencies providing services (The National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2016). Before the Affordable Care Act (ACA) most homeless individuals did not have health insurance, as provisions for these individuals as well as the low-income population could only be accepted into the Medi-cal / Medicaid program, if they had children that were eligible. Since ACA was implemented a large percentage of the homeless are insured, but, this does not mean that the preexisting gaps and barriers to access health care do not exist. They do. Being homeless has been found to correlate to a poor health status (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2016). In fact, homeless individuals are at risk and experience more chronic illness than someone who has housing. Additionally, once chronic illness develops in a homeless individual, they are at higher risk for comorbid conditions, new conditions (such as skin disorders and respiratory illness) and an acceleration in the development of their disease(s).

According to recent research, homelessness affects between 150,000 and 300,000 Canadians a year (Cherner et al. 2017, 219; Gandermann et al. 2014, 341; Piat et al. 2015, 2367). This increase in homelessness began in the 1980’s following economic changes as well as shifts in government policy that lead to a reduction in supports for low-income families as well as a decrease in affordable housing available across Canada (Gaetz 2010, 21; Piat et al. 2015, 2367). Though proving a national problem, a concrete solution for homelessness does not exist, making it a wicked problem seemingly impossible to solve. Homelessness continues to present itself as a multifaceted

The Homeless are a vulnerable population. Homelessness is a social issue that anyone can almost be subjected to despite his or her age, race, ethnicity or geographical background. Kornblum (2012) defined homelessness as… “as a social condition in which people do not have regular housing and are forced to sleep in public places, public shelters, or facilities designed for homeless individuals and families” (p.280). The homeless population faces several adversaries in their lifetime of being homeless. Their adversaries are a lack physical and emotional disabilities, and possibly drug abuse. Grant some are homeless by choice, whereas most are homeless by mishaps, but nevertheless, they are humans deserving to be treated with fairness, dignity,

The social determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, and age (WHO, 2016). This current event relates to the social determinants of health because homelessness has a huge impact on someone’s overall health and quality of life. People who experience homelessness do not have the resources to maintain their health. This can lead to stress, depression, substance abuse, and a number of problems. They are exposed to communicable diseases, malnutrition and many other health issues. Over 500,000 Americans are homeless every night (Kertesz, 2016). This is why we have Health Care for the Homeless programs. The majority of federally funded organizations for the homeless are operated properly. But, there are some

If you do not already know what homelessness means, it is someone who is not able to live in a stable residence because of financial or psychological problems, so they are forced to live on the streets or put themselves on the streets, because they feel it would be a better fit. Homelessness in Canada is a very large and concerning issue because of the growing population.

Youth homelessness in Canada is on the rise and it has become one of the most concerning and growing issues across the country. It is estimated that at least 235 000 Canadians experience homelessness at some point every year, 35 000 Canadians experience homelessness every night and approximately 20 % of the homeless population are young people between the ages of 16 and 24(Gaetz et al, 2014). Contrary to popular belief, the leading causes of homelessness youth in Canada are the result of a variety of different factors like economic hardships and unstable housing situations, relational circumstances (family conflict, abuse, discrimination) and system failures. Most homeless people are not on street by choice. In most cases, families facing economic adversities due to poverty and unstable housing situations are unable to support their family members.

Political leaders in US, Canada, policy-makers and Researchers are in agreement with “Housing First intervention as a solution to homelessness.” Therefore, addressing the homeless individual with housing and mental health challenges, primary care, psychiatry, and case-coordination. In addition, conversations” ultimate to goal to end homelessness in Canada.”

When it comes to matters that have to do with homelessness, it can be said that compared to the U.S., Canada is more focused on dealing with the issue to eliminate it rather than appeasing the guilt through creating smaller programs. Author’s Tompsett, Fales, and Toro (2007) express this by stating that “Compared to U.S. respondents, Canadians felt homelessness was a less serious problem in the nearest city and nationwide, were more likely to favour increases in Federal spending to combat homelessness, and were more supportive of rights for the homeless.” (p. 76). Canadians also felt that it was the government’s responsibility to help those who are homeless and because of these attitudes, it was found that Canadians took a more interventionist

If you are living in a small neighborhood, most of the people are comparable economically. Having enough food and clean water and shelter takes precedence over economic justice. For countries with a low GDP, life expectancy estimates tend to increase with increasing GDP, which can indicate that everyone is getting the basic necessities of life and living standards are improving (Raphael, 2014, p. 26). When I came across Box 1.1: “What Produces Health in a Population”, it strikes me thinking that the homeless population do not have access to this. For example, the “provision of the basic needs (food, water, shelter, security), provision of caring and sharing which is measured by the distribution of wealth, resources, and income, access to basic health care services, cultural elements of social harmony, and a focus on early life” (Raphael, 2014, p.26). Knowing that these homeless people are not able to live somewhere with a roof above their head with a guardian taking care of them is quite alarming and

Homeless people within Australia and the world face many problems in relation to barriers that prevent them from achieving equal health opportunities

I believe homelessness is one of the most pressing social issues that Canada is facing, there are a number of diverse reasons for people living like this and the homeless population is more or less invisible to the rest of society. There are both external and internal factors that may contribute to an individual becoming homeless, these may include, but are not limited to; mental health issues, addiction and/or alcoholism, physical disabilities, lack of financial and social support, lack of employment skills and a lack of employment opportunities. There seems to be a gap in services and the large number of homeless individuals and families are the ones that fall through the cracks.