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Homelessness and Mental Illness

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Imagine a man on the streets, who society has forgotten. This man emits the smell of garbage; he has not bathed in months. This man sits quietly mumbling to himself. To the outer world he is just one of the many homeless, but little does society know that this man has a mental illness as well. Homelessness and mental illness are linked. These two happenings have similar beginnings. Homelessness is influenced by drug and alcohol disuse, being homeless at a young age, money problems, and trauma symptoms. Mental illness is caused by many of the same things, but it can also happen at birth. The effects that each entity has on a person are comparable. Rehabilitation is a necessary process if a victim of homelessness and or mental illness wants …show more content…

S263). This test is “11 questions in the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Module” and was issued on a scale of one to eight (Montgomery et al. S263). Another test conducted by a different team was used on a scale of either affective or psychotic and it was called the IES-R (Helfrich et al. 119). Both testing groups decided that housing and constant therapeutic sessions were key into reintroducing people to society. The most difficult problem with their conclusions is the aspect of housing. Housing First is one of the many healthcare and housing organizations to yield multiple aids for the homeless and mentally ill (Somers et al. 1). These aids consist of sustainable market housing without the requirement of a lease (Somers et al. 1). “Our findings confirm that HF programs- particularly the ones using scattered site format- promote reductions in offending and reconviction among people who were previously homeless and have a current mental illness ” (Somers et al. 6). By using a “scattered site format,” the organization chose a random sample that pulled many subjects from the streets and put them through the HF program. This was one of the first real solutions shown in reintroducing the once homeless into society. Haven for Hope homeless shelter is centered on returning the homeless and mentally ill to community. They have plans on renovating one of the male housings into a psychiatric facility with rooms for the residents

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