Examining the needs of persons experiencing homelessness: Bringing the voice of lived experience to policy priorities

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-31
Author(s):  
Elise Smith ◽  
Piper Moore ◽  
Sarah Canham
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experience ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Salt Lake ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Basic Needs ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Health And Social Services ◽  
State And Local ◽  
Services And Supports

Policy related to homelessness varies across federal, state, and local levels influencing access to health and social services among persons experiencing homelessness. With a diversity of community stakeholders comes a diversity of ideas about which health and social services to provide and prioritize. Despite the unique insights PEH are able to offer on their own situations, their voices often remain excluded from research and policy. The aim of the current study was to identify the basic needs and health and social service priorities of PEH, to incorporate these voices into policy decisions and prioritization. Fifteen participants age 18 and older who had any experience of homelessness in Salt Lake Countyparticipated in in-depth qualitative interviews between February and March 2020. Open-ended questions enabled the interviews to naturally progress and focus on what was most relevant to participants and their experience. Data were categorized into the services and supports identified as the most needed by PEH and to help lift people out of homelessness: 1) Housing and shelter, 2) Income and employment, 3) Transportation, 4) Food, 5) Physical and mental health services, and 6) Social support. We describe the needs, challenges, and solutions as identified and narrated by study participants. Findings offer critical insight into how the homelessness crisis should be approached by policymakers as the ways in which PEH understand and utilize the system of available resources and supports must align with their abilities and realities. Without these in-depth discussions with PEH about how they understand and meet their basic needs, there will be ongoing gaps in service delivery and mismatches in the attempts made to serve this population.

scholarly journals The Health of Undocumented Latinx Immigrants: What We Know and Future Directions

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 289-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
India J. Ornelas ◽  
Thespina J. Yamanis ◽  
Raymond A. Ruiz
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Community Health Centers ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Public Health Practice ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approaches ◽  
State And Local ◽  
Conducting Research

Undocumented Latinx immigrants experience unique factors prior to migration, during migration, and after migration that shape their health. Our review summarizes the limited but growing literature highlighting how exposure to trauma, immigration enforcement, changes to social networks, and discrimination negatively affect the mental and physical health of undocumented Latinx immigrants. We also discuss how policies and social ties can promote their health. We focus on areas of particular concern, including health care, mental health, and HIV. Future research should use interdisciplinary approaches and intersectional frameworks to understand and address health inequities. Conducting research with undocumented Latinx immigrant communities requires community engagement, assurance of confidentiality, and creative recruitment and retention strategies. Recommendations for public health practice include investing in community health centers and organizations to ensure access to health and social services; presenting results with sufficient contextualization to interpret their generalizability; and advocating for federal-, state-, and local-level policy changes that reduce the negative health consequences associated with being undocumented.

Patterns of Health and Social Services Utilization

1989 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
François Béland
Keyword(s):  
Health Status ◽  
Social Services ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Support Network ◽  
Pension Scheme ◽  
Small Subset ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Services Utilization ◽  
Health And Social Services ◽  
Two Samples

ABSTRACTUtilization of an array of health and social services from formal and informal sources is studied here 1) to identify profiles of services utilization and 2) to predict the location of elderly in these profiles by a set of independent variables such as the sociodemographic characteristics of the elderly, their physical and mental health status and the density of their social support network. Two samples of non-institutionalized elderly living in two middle-sized towns were drawn from the universal old-age Canadian pension scheme. Their utilization of hospital, medical and pharmaceutical services was assessed, and their use of services for help with adivities of daily living was measured by a set of six indicators. A cluster analysis was run to identify profites of services utilization, and a discriminant analysis used the profiles as the criterion to be predicted by a set of variables. Five profiles of utilization were obtained; four of them identified elderly with very few experiences of services utilization and a fifth, a low number of elderly with utilization of all of the services listed in this study. Most of the elderly were users of a small subset of medical and social services. The location of elderly in the profiles was predicted by physical health status, coresidence and income. These results show that health and social services from both formal and informal sources are utilized by elderly. It is suggested that new types of formal agencies which consider the simultaneous delivery of social and health services will succeed inasmuch as they have the ability to interact with a system of informal care.

scholarly journals Dying to Belong: The Importance of Familiarity in Later Life

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 233372142094197
Author(s):  
Lucia Carragher ◽  
Catherine Ryan
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Population Aging ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Community Services ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Services And Supports ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

Despite the large amount of research into loneliness, the evidence base around effective ways of tackling loneliness among older adults is limited. Up to one-half of all older adults regularly feel lonely, negatively impacting physical and mental health. In light of population aging, family dispersal, and in the aftermath of COVID-19, it is vital that we grow the evidence base around the lived experience of older people, knowing what they want and why, and ensuring community services and supports are meaningful to them. Method: Three focus groups were held with community-dwelling older adults in Ireland. Results: Loneliness is associated with the loss of familiarity and connection to community. Conclusions: Understanding loneliness in later life is increasingly important with population aging. As plans for ending confinement linked to COVID-19 are devised, a mechanism is urgently needed to sustain the positive changes to communities which have meaningfully connected with older adults.

The mental and physical health of clients referred to social workers in a local authority department and a general practice attachment scheme

1984 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roslyn H. Corney
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
General Practice ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Local Authority ◽  
Medical Personnel ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Health And Social Services ◽  
Mental And Physical Health ◽  
Very High

SynopsisAlthough numerous reports have strongly argued that there is a need for a closer collaboration between the health and social services, studies investigating the health of clients in contact with the personal social services have been few and limited. This study collected information regarding the physical and mental health of clients referred to social workers in a local authority intake team and to a general practice attachment scheme by means of questionnaires completed by the client and at interview. The results indicated that the proportions of patients with physical or mental illness were very high. However, while social workers in the attachment scheme had many contacts with members of the primary care team regarding these clients, contacts between intake social workers and medical personnel were very limited.

Nobody asked me how I felt: experiences of adult children of persons with young-onset dementia

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (12) ◽  
pp. 1935-1944 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Lage Barca ◽  
Kirsten Thorsen ◽  
Knut Engedal ◽  
Per Kristian Haugen ◽  
Aud Johannessen
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Adult Children ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Young Onset ◽  
Health And Social Services ◽  
The Family ◽  
Living Together ◽  
Centered Care ◽  
Young Onset Dementia

ABSTRACTBackground:There are few studies of young persons (<65 years old) with dementia, and the situation of their children has been a neglected research field. The aim is explore how adult children of a parent with young-onset dementia have experienced the development of their parents’ dementia and what needs they have for assistance.Method:Qualitative interviews with 14 informants (aged 20–37 years; 12 daughters, 2 sons) during 2011 were conducted and analyzed thematically.Results:The informants experienced great burdens and felt neglected during the development of their parents’ dementia, both by their family and by health and social services. They emphasized a need to be seen as individuals, with their experiences, feelings, and personal needs for assistance. The stresses experienced during the development of parental dementia seemed to increase conflicts in the family. There were variations in reactions between children, depending on age, gender, family structure and relationships, responsibilities, personal relations with both parents, and whether there was an adult primary caregiver. The length of time living together with the parent with dementia seemed to increase the stress and burden to the children. They expressed a great need for information and support.Conclusion:The findings strengthen the notion of the need for family-oriented support, combined with person-centered care for the children according to their needs. In addition, group meetings and contact with other young people in the same stage of life could be of interest for some.

Improving Speech and Language Services through Effective Time Management

1983 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 86-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara W. Travers
Keyword(s):  
Time Management ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Speech Language Pathologist ◽  
School Based ◽  
Work Area ◽  
Paper Work ◽  
Areas Of Concern ◽  
State And Local ◽  
Therapeutic Services

This paper presents strategies for increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the school-based speech-language pathologist. Various time management strategies are adapted and outlined for three major areas of concern: using time, organizing the work area, and managing paper work. It is suggested that the use of such methods will aid the speech-language pathologist in coping with federal, state, and local regulations while continuing to provide quality therapeutic services.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document