Table of Contents Title Page Introduction What is Homelessness? Why does Homelessnes cause so much confusion and debate? What are the Causes of Homelessness? What Services are available for the Homeless? The Impact of not Having a place to call Home What is the Health Status of the Homeless?
Anyone can be vulnerable at any given point in time as a result of life circumstances or response to illness or events “ (de Chesnay & Anderson, 2008, p. 3). What barriers may prevent these groups from obtaining needed services? Barriers such as poor economy, mental illness, physical illness/limitations, and addiction problems prevent vulnerable populations from obtaining needed services. Some veterans are homeless because they must wait a long time to receive their disability benefits, and they cannot work, leading them with no money and no homes after returning from war. Many veterans may become drug abusers and decide no to go back to their families while struggling with this problem, finding themselves on the streets.
(Baumohl, 2001) Some people felt like homelessness was caused by heavy drinking, drug abuse, and mental problems. Because of the new policies the government made, these people were not allowed to be housed in hospitals and jails. “Homelessness was described mainly as a problem in the rehabilitation and control of troubled and troublesome people who were not only houseless but barred from their traditional institutional shelters and estranged from family and friends who might take them in”. (Baumohl, p.
To help the homeless population we will review what constitutes a vulnerable population along with looking at what barriers this population may have to prevent them from seeking help. Then I will briefly review my experience with vulnerable population. Vulnerable Population Vulnerable population is any group or community of people who are susceptible or at higher risk to contract disease, or illness physically or psychologically. They have little or no support system or service to provide them with help. Barriers to obtaining services The barriers that the homeless population may prevent them from seeking help or services are many.
Structural factors: Our infrastructure has not succeeded in supporting the most susceptible in our society. Among structural factors the major cause of homelessness is high housing costs and lack of affordable housing. Other causes are increased poverty, rising unemployment, social exclusion, and harmful effects of de-institutionalization. Individual factors: Among individual factors, homelessness is commonly caused by a crisis in one’s life. This crisis could be leaving the parental home after arguments, marital or relationship breakdown, widowhood, leaving care, Leaving prison, a sharp deterioration of mental health, increased drug or alcohol misuse, a financial crisis or mounting debts or Eviction.
Larkin (2009) argues that no general acceptable definition of homelessness exists, due to the various ways people are made homeless, the way homelessness is constructed by policies, the diverse population that are homeless and the different description used to describe this group. However, English law illustrates that people are considered homeless when they have no accommodation or their accommodation is not suitable for them
Clearly homelessness is a problem in America. The statistics show more and more people are sleeping in shelters or on the streets. Is homelessness a problem or the effect of another problem? Some might argue that there will always be homeless people because it is the result of the human condition and biases we have in our society. On the other hand, some would disagree and argue that the cause of homelessness is because the economy is bad.
The community complains that drugs and alcohol are prevalence in these homes. Homeless shelters have been argued to have a negative effect on businesses because pedestrians are stopped outside their stores by homeless people begging for money. Neighborhoods, as well as schools, argue that homeless shelters bring in bad elements to their surroundings. Drugs and alcohol also tend to surround homeless shelters. Shelters are just a temporary fix to an ongoing problem.
The three major factors contributing to homelessness in King County are inadequate income, the high cost of housing, and personal or family problems, such as domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse or mental illness. Surveys of homeless people show rates of drug and alcohol addiction at about 65%. Research indicates that approximately 50% of homeless adults have a mental illness. Prominent reasons for homelessness among youth include emotional conflict in homes, drug or alcohol problems, physical abuse by a parent, and depression
HOMELESSNESS IN AMERICA "Hobo," "tramp," "vagrant," and "transient" are names for people who find themselves having to cope with the very serious problem of being homeless. What we have found in this country, and maybe we're more aware of it now, is one problem that we've had, even in the best of times, is the people who are sleeping on the grates, the homeless. Homelessness is a problem affecting many areas of the U.S. and abroad. I am sure that many of you have seen a homeless person on the street before. They sat their begging you for your spare change, or some food to keep them from starving that night.