HOMELESSNESS & HEALTH

Health outcomes amongst people who experience homelessness are increasingly well documented, though still poorly understood. Nevertheless, it is a horrifying reality that the average age of death for people experiencing homelessness is 45 for men and 43 for women.

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The relationship between health and homelessness is not just in one direction: bad health may lead to homelessness; homelessness can lead to poor health. When we talk about health in the context of homelessness, we are talking about a web of causes and effects that includes physical and mental health.

 

This picture is frequently compounded by substance misuse, which together with physical ill health and mental ill health comprise a 'tri-morbidity' that predisposes those with experience of homelessness to an overall decline in health and wellbeing.

 

It is important to note that all forms of homelessness lead to worse health outcomes. Homelessness is classified primarily as chronic (episode lasting more than 1 year), intermittent (those who cycle in and out of homelessness) and crisis (an episode lasting less than one year following an unexpected crisis); although all three are associated with severe negative health effects, chronic homelessness has been linked to worse clinical outcomes than the other two.