Canadian Observatory on Homelessness
The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness is the largest national research institute devoted to homelessness in Canada. The COH is the curator of the Homeless Hub.
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The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness is the largest national research institute devoted to homelessness in Canada. The COH is the curator of the Homeless Hub.
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Author(s): Dorothy Badry, Christine Walsh, Meaghan Bell, Kaylee Ramage
Organization: University of Calgary Faculty of Social Work
Publication Date: 2016
This project explored the support needs of adults with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) within the episodically and chronically homeless population and the impact of FASD on service utilization, program compliance, and housing outcomes within the Calgary System of Care. FASD is a disability caused by prenatal alcohol exposure and can impact a person’s functional ability with regards to memory, planning, and understanding cause and effect. I...

Author(s): Tim Aubry, Meaghan Bell, John Ecker, Paula Goering
Organization: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness; Mental Health Commission of Canada
Publication Date: 2015
The Homelessness Partnering Secretariat (HPS) has developed several directives to assist communities with the shift to a Housing First framework. The first directive states that chronically and episodically homeless individuals should be prioritized to receive Housing First services. Therefore, it is imperative that communities are equipped with the necessary information and skills so as to facilitate the screening and prioritization of homeless...
Author(s): Ron Kneebone, Meaghan Bell, Nicole Jackson, Ali Jadidzadeh
Organization: University of Calgary, School of Public Policy
Publication Date: 2015
In 2008, Calgary was the first city in Canada to institute a 10-year plan to end homelessness. The plan was introduced in part due to the steady and rapid growth in homelessness in the city since 1992. Since 2008 growth in the number of homeless people has stopped despite a rapidly growing city. The number of people enumerated as homeless by point-in-time counts has fallen from 304 persons per 100,000 population to 256 persons per 100,000 populat...
Author(s): Dorothy Badry, Christine Walsh, Meaghan Bell, Kaylee Ramage, Julia Gibbon
Publication Date: 2015
The focus of this brief paper is to describe a current research project exploring the lived experiences of individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) who are supported by the homeless-serving sector in Calgary, Alberta. Individuals with FASD are considered vulnerable due to their disability, which often goes unrecognized and thus viewed as social, emotional and behavioral challenges. It is widely known that individuals with FASD face...
Author(s): Christine Walsh, Meaghan Bell, Nicole Jackson, John Graham, Shafak Sajid, Katrina Milaney
Organization: Calgary Homeless Foundation; University of Calgary, Faculty of Social Work
Publication Date: 2014
In response to the continued growth of family homelessness, communities across Canada are developing family-centered interventions to end homelessness and help families achieve residential stability. In Calgary, there is concern for the growing number of families entering into homelessness with Calgary’s two emergency shelters consistently at capacity. Families experiencing homelessness face a range of structural barriers, personal risk factors,...
Author(s): Christine A. Walsh, Brigette Krieg, Gayle Rutherford, Meaghan Bell
Publication Date: 2014
This paper explores the cycling between incarceration and homelessness among 18 women in Calgary, Alberta and Prince Albert, Saskatchewan employing community based research and arts-based research. Women who participated in the study highlighted the personal obstacles and societal barriers encountered before and after incarceration while identifying gaps in services. The objectives of the research were four fold: (1) to more fully understand the...