Search Library
Publication Date: 2021
Objective:
This study examined the scope of common mental health problems and perceived impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic among direct service providers working with people experiencing homelessness in Canada.
Method:
This cross-sectional study used an online survey that was disseminated to homeless service, supportive housing, and harm reduction organizations and networks. Data were collected on depression, anxiety, stress, post-traumatic stress,...
Organization: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness; A Way Home Canada; Making the Shift Youth Homelessness Demonstration Lab
Publisher: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press
Publication Date: 2021
This report presents the results from the evaluation of the implementation and early development of the Good Shepherd Centre’s Youth Reconnect (YR) program in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The YR program is part of the Making the Shift Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project (MtS DEMS) – a three-year project funded by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). MtS DEMS is focused on testing three prevention-based program models in 10 communit...
Organization: Covenant House Toronto, Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (Hub Solutions)
Publication Date: 2021
Covenant House Toronto piloted a project titled Creative Collaboration for System Transformation: Strategy to End Youth Homelessness in Toronto.
The objective of this 13-month project was to pilot and develop a systems-level approach to homelessness for youth in Toronto with the aim of providing streamlined services and ultimately preventing youth homelessness.
Covenant House Toronto, in collaboration with A Way Home Toronto and A Way Home C...
Organization: Social Planning and Research Council of Hamilton - Indigenous Reaching Home Team, Hub Solutions, The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness
Publication Date: 2020
This report explores the national shift in addressing homelessness through a “coordinated access” approach and its impact on Indigenous individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Launched April 1st, 2019, Reaching Home, Canada’s national homelessness strategy, has required that all Designated Communities (i.e., urban centres in Canada) have a coordinated access system in place by March 31, 2022.
The focus of the report is largely on the...
Organization: Hub Solutions, Canadian Observatory on Homelessness, Raising the Roof
Publication Date: 2019
The Host Homes model is an alternative to shelters and transitional housing services for young people at-risk of becoming homeless. It is an example of place-based youth homelessness prevention, meaning that the program is located in the young person’s own community. Bridging the Gap is the first program to operate under the Host Homes model in Ontario and has been in existence for 10 years. The program is located in Halton Region and predominate...
Organization: Hub Solutions, Canadian Observatory on Homelessness, Raising the Roof
Publication Date: 2018
HireUp is an online employment platform designed to assist young people who face barriers in obtaining employment. HireUp received funding from the Innovative Solutions to Homelessness (ISH) grant administered by the Homelessness Partnering Strategy, Employment and Social Development Canada, Government of Canada. As part of this grant, funding was dedicated to a thirdparty evaluator to assess the development and outcomes of the program. Hub Solut...
Organization: Eva's Initiatives for Homeless Youth, Hub Solutions
Publication Date: 2018
The purpose of the study was to identify supports to help women-identified youth who experience homelessness and mental health concerns maintain their housing after leaving emergency shelter and transitional housing environments. Research demonstrates that women- identified young people who experience homelessness are at a higher risk of experiencing mental health challenges and face greater victimization while homeless. But we know less about th...
Publication Date: 2018
Little is known about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) adults who experience homelessness. The current review critically analyzes the scant literature on LGBTQ adults who experience homelessness, with a particular focus on: (1) pathways into homelessness; (2) support needs; (3) targeted programming; and (4) exits out of homelessness. A total of 143 articles were identified, and 16 articles met the criteria of appropriate age...
Organization: Hub Solutions
Publication Date: 2018
The EPIC program was launched in March 2017 by the Shelter, Support and Housing Administration (SSHA), a Division of the City of Toronto. EPIC is a one-year pilot project that provides wrap around eviction prevention services in order to help tenants facing imminent risk of eviction.
EPIC uses a blended model of direct and contracted community agency service delivery. The EPIC team lead assigns clients to the community agencies based upon geogra...
Publication Date: 2018
Abstract
Housing is a key social determinant of health that contributes to the well-documented relationship between socioeconomic status and health. This study explored how individuals with histories of unstable and precarious housing perceive their housing or shelter situations, and the impact of these settings on their health and well-being. Participants were recruited from the Health and Housing in Transition study (HHiT), a longitudinal, mul...
Organization: The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness, Eva’s Initiatives For Homeless Youth
Publication Date: 2017
BACKGROUND
In general, youth service providers have a strong interest in learning how effective they are in improving the quality of life for youth experiencing homelessness. But it has proven difficult to identify a coherent framework in which to measure outcomes, and young people's voices have not traditionally been brought into the evaluation process as the people most impacted by these services.
With the support of an Innovative Solutions t...
Organization: BC Housing, by Pathways PtH Housing First, Inc. and the Centre for Research on Educational and Community Services, University of Ottawa
Publication Date: 2017
BACKGROUND
This report is prepared for BC Housing as part of the evaluation of the Vulnerability Assessment Tool (VAT). The VAT was created by the Downtown Emergency Service Centre in Seattle, Washington, to objectively determine the vulnerability of their clients to continued housing instability. The VAT involves a structured interview to assess an individual experiencing homelessness or marginal housing on 10 domains: survival skills, basic nee...
Publication Date: 2014
This paper describes the implementation of Housing First in a small Canadian city. Given that the majority of Housing First research has been conducted in large American cities, providing a Canadian context in a small city contributes significant insights for similarly sized areas. The main objectives were to determine the adaptations made to the Housing First model and the contextual realities that affected implementation. Data were collected fr...
Publication Date: 2017
OBJECTIVES:
The objective of the study is to characterize the associations between a history of incarceration and subsequent housing stability over a two-year follow-up period among a sample of homeless and vulnerably housed individuals.
METHODS:
The study was a prospective cohort study of homeless and vulnerably housed adults in three Canadian cities. Between 2009 and 2012, data were collected using structured, in-person interviews at baseline...
Publication Date: 2017
Abstract
The current longitudinal study used mixed methods to examine the relationship of housing and neighborhood characteristics and community integration among a population of homeless and vulnerably housed individuals. Participants were recruited at homeless shelters, meal programs, and rooming houses in Ottawa, Canada, and participated in 3 in-person interviews, each approximately 1 year apart. Participants were placed into either a “high” o...
Publication Date: 2016
This study examined predictors of physical and psychological integration in homeless adults with problematic substance use. Homeless adults with problematic substance use (n = 115) in Ottawa, Canada, completed questionnaires regarding their demographics (age, gender, Aboriginal ethnicity), health and social functioning (physical health, mental health, alcohol use problems, drug use problems, social skills), environmental factors (satisfaction wit...
Publication Date: 2016
In this study, I utilized a process of reflexivity to examine the effect of location when conducting interviews with homeless and vulnerably housed individuals. The impact of interview locations has received limited attention in the community psychology literature, despite the majority of research being community-based. The study provides insights into the challenges, benefits, and power relations involved in selecting a research interview site a...
Publication Date: 2016
Queer (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, questioning, two-spirited) youth are greatly overrepresented in the homeless youth population. The present review critically analyzes the literature on queer youth homelessness, with a particular focus on (a) methodological issues; (b) entries into homelessness; (c) programming needs; (d) targeted programming; and (e) exits out of homelessness. Results from this review demonstrate that homeles...
Publisher: University of Ottawa
Publication Date: 2015
This thesis presents four distinct studies of psychological and social integration of homeless and vulnerably housed individuals. The first study presents a predictive model of psychological integration, defined as a sense of belonging and membership to one’s community. The second study presents a predictive model of social integration, defined as how an individual engages with others in the community. The third study presents a mixed methods com...
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...