Homeless Youth: Access to Healthcare Services
Homeless Youth

Homeless Youth: Increasing Access to Healthcare Services

Homeless Youth: Increasing Access to Healthcare Services

The estimated number people in homeless families in 2014 were 216,261, of which nearly 60% were under the age of 18 (Henry et al., 2014, p. 29). The number of unaccompanied homeless children and youth in 2014 was estimated to be just under 200,000 individuals (p. 39). The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) defines children as any individual under the age of 18, while youth are defined as being between 18- and 24-years of age. Unaccompanied children represent about 70% of this homeless demographic. Combining these numbers result in about 78,281 and 263,727 homeless youth and children, respectively, living on the streets and in shelters in the United States in 2014, which represent 13.5 and 45.6%, respectively, of all homeless individuals.

Other estimates suggest that the number of adolescents living…...

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References

Ensign, J., & Panke, A. (2002). Barriers and bridges to care: Voices of homeless female adolescent youth in Seattle, Washington, USA. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 37(2), 166-72.

HCH Clinicians' Network. (2009). Engaging adolescents who are homeless in care. Helping Hands, 13(5), 1-8. Retrieved from  http://www.nhchc.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/HealingHandsOctweb.pdf .

Henry, M., Cortes, A., Shivji, A., Buck. K., Khadduri, J., & Culhane, D. (2014). Part 1. Point-in-Time Estimates of Homelessness. The 2014 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress. October 2014. Office of Community Planning and Development, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Retrieved from  https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/2014-AHAR-Part1-508-version.pdf .

Hudson, A.L., Nyamathi, A., Greengold, B., Stagle, A., Koniak-Griffin, D., Khalilifard, F., et al. (2010). Health-seeking challenges among homeless youth. Nursing Research, 59(3), 212-8.

Talents are noted as an individual's naturally recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that may be applied productively. The more dominant a theme in an individual, the more that particular theme will likely influence that person's behavior and performance (Strengthstest 2009).
Table I: Thirty-four Talent Themes (Strengthstest 2009).

Achiever®

People strong in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.

Activator®

People strong in the Activator theme can make things happen by turning thoughts into action. They are often impatient.

Adaptability®

People strong in the Adaptability theme prefer to "go with the flow." They tend to be "now" people who take things as they come and discover the future one day at a time.

Analytical®

People strong in the Analytical theme search for reasons and causes. They have the ability to think about all the factors that might affect a situation.

ArrangerTM

People strong in the…...

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REFERENCES

About HMIS (2006). Amherst H. Wilder Foundation. Retrieved October 20, 2009 from http://www.hmismn.org/about/index.php

Bansal, P.C. (2008). Team leadership: Concepts, roles, strategies & attributes. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations. Shri Ram Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources.

Retrieved October 20, 2009 from HighBeam Research:

 

unaway and Homeless Youth Act of 2008-PL 110-378
The unaway and Homeless Act of 2008 built on legislation established in the 1970s that addressed youth issues in an attempt to keep youths from entering into the juvenile corrections system. Over the years, the Act has been reauthorized and expanded to support programs that aid homeless and runaway youths. Currently, reauthorization is awaiting approval in Congress. Leahy has added the rights of LGBT youths to the proposal, which has prompted epublicans to reject it. Thus, millions in funding is being withheld from programs that depend on federal dollars. This paper discusses the background of the Act and the proposal for reauthorization and why it should be given so that programs may continue and youths may be assisted.

Introduction

The econnecting Homeless Youth Act also known as the unaway and Homeless Youth Act of 2008-PL 110-378 is current legislation that was passed in 2008 at…...

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References

Cosponsors: 2.262 -- 114th Congress. (2016). Congress.gov. Retrieved from  https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/262/cosponsors 

Dunn, M., Krehely, J. (2012). Runaway and Homeless Youth Act should include gay

and transgender youth. Center for American Progress. Retrieved from  https://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/issues/2012/05/pdf/lgbt_rhya.pdf 

Federal Programs. (2015). Youth.gov. Retrieved from  http://youth.gov/youth-topics/runaway-and-homeless-youth/federal-programs

For some, there will be a denial and minimization of the substance habit as being inconsequential, purely recreational or extremely intermittent. This response is akin to the young adult asserting that there is no problem. For other homeless youths, their drug or alcohol habit maybe viewed as a form of survival: these drugs help these teenagers bear life on the street. In that sense the substance is attributed as beneficial for the escapism necessary to survival. "Using, even abusing substances is often viewed as a 'normal' practice by those identifying with street culture. Homeless young people report using drugs and alcohol as a coping strategy and often have more favorable attitudes toward drug use than their non-homeless peers" (Gomez et al., 2010). Thus, there could be a complete difficulty in making any assessments, since many homeless youths won't see their substance abuse as a problem at all, and won't…...

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References

Baer, J., & Garrett, S. (2007). Brief motivational intervention with homeless adolescents: Evaluating effects on substance use and service utilization. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 582-586.

Baer, J., & Peterson, P. (2006). Short-term effects of a brief motivational intervention to reduce alcohol and drug risk among homeless adolescents. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 254-264.

Bender, K. (2010). Factors associated with trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder among homeless youth in three U.S. cities. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 161 -- 168.

Edidin, E. (2012). The Mental and Physical Health of Homeless Youth: A Literature Review. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 354-375.

Strength Based Assessment -- LGBT Homeless Youth
The objective of this study is to describe the process that would be used for completing a strengths-based assessment for LGBT homeless youth.

In order to make a strengths-based assessment for LGBT homeless youth, the social worker or advocate must first examine what is available to assist LGBT homeless youth in the way of services and assistive information that will serve to empower LGBT homeless youth to overcome their present situation.

Services that homeless LBGT youth are in need of include medical and health care services, access to housing, nutrition, counseling where needed as well as access to educational institutions including higher education at colleges and universities. The social worker is in a unique position to assist these youth in gaining access to these resources. Social workers work from a viewpoint of the principles of human rights which are formulated upon the basis of the worth…...

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References

Strengths-based Approaches for Working with Individuals. (2012) IRISS, No. 16, May 2012. Retrieved from:  http://www.iriss.org.uk/resources/strengths-based-approaches-working-individuals 

Strengths-based Interviews (2015) University of Kent. Retrieved from:  http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/interviews/strength-based-interviews.htm 

A Strength-Based Approach to Working with Youth and Families: A Review of Research (nd) Human Services. Retrieved from:  http://humanservices.ucdavis.edu/academy/pdf/strength_based.pdf

Social wok is a demanding yet ewading field. Though vaious initiatives, social wokes can have a pofound impact on the wold in which they live. This is paticulaly tue fo homelessness as it elates to the LGBT Youth. Homelessness unfotunately continues to be a costly epidemic plaguing society. The costs of homelessness fa outweigh the taditional aspects of lowe tax evenue and poductivity. The costs of inceased cime lack of skills taining, and lack of pofessional gowth ae all vey eal costs to society. Fotunately, eseach dedicated towads the impovements of homelessness thoughout Ameica is vey obust. Vaious activities such as counseling, job taining, and othe foms of intevention have had a pofound impact on homelessness in Ameica. This document will fist discuss effective pevention and intevention measues of homelessness within the LGBT community. Paticula emphasis will be placed on pee eviewed aticles and academic eseach to suppot all of…...

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references at the time. Economic contractions for instance, could directly impact charitable contributions and

Health isks Across the Life Span: Impact of Nursing Intervention on Decreasing Substances Among Homeless Youth
Statistical data shows that an estimated 1.2 million people from ages 11 to 19 live without any shelter. Usage of alcohol (mainly binge drinking and methamphetamine) is very common among these homeless adolescents, they are observed to consume these substances more frequently and in greater amounts as compared to the youth that is not homeless. The main reasons behind high consumption of addictive substances by homeless youth is social (peer)pressure that prevails in the lower strata of United States' population. In order to reduce the consumption of alcohol and other drugs among the poor population, Health Promotion Program was started by nurses and in the article to follow; we'll view the impacts of this campaign in detail.

The main outcomes of substance abuse among the homeless teenagers results in:

Lower rates of condom use

High risk of…...

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REFERENCES

Nyamathi, A., Branson, C., Kennedy, B., Salem, B., Khalilifard, F., Marfisee, M., Getzoff, D., & Leake, B. (2012). Impact of Nursing Intervention on Decreasing Substances among Homeless Youth. The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, Vol 21, No. 6, 558-565. Retrieved from  http://www.nursingworld.org

With the increase in families, and thus children and teens on the street, there has been a subsequent increase in youth drug use, pregnancy and crime, especially violent and sexual crimes. This disturbing trend has created a new challenge to how to deal with the homeless epidemic as new resources are needed. Further, many of the traditional charitable organizations are unequipped to deal with this new need, meaning that few services are now available to the homeless.

In conclusion, if anything is clear, it is that the homeless problem is becoming worse instead of better. Instead of homeless individuals, there are now homeless families. With this, the cycle of homelessness continues, giving society few, if any, options on stopping the vicious and continuing downward spiral of poverty, homelessness, and the multitude of problems associated with it.

ibliography

Aday, Lu Ann. (1994): "Health Status of Vulnerable Populations." Annual Review of PUblic Health. 15:487-509.

DePastino, Todd.…...

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Bibliography

Aday, Lu Ann. (1994): "Health Status of Vulnerable Populations." Annual Review of PUblic Health. 15:487-509.

DePastino, Todd. (2003): Citizen Hobo: How a Century of Homelessness Shaped America. New York: Random House.

United States Code, Title 42, Chapter 119, Subchapter I, section 11302. "General definition of homeless individual." United States Code. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government.

Wood, David. (1992): Delivering Health Care to Homeless Persons: The Diagnosis and Management of Medical and Mental Health Conditions. New York: Springer Publishing Company.

This was equivalent to those youth utilizing ongoing, long-term services (Pollio, Thompson, Tobias, eid and Spitznagel, 2006).
Critique

There are several significant limitations that must be considered when looking at the results of this study. First, there was lack of a control group which limits the conclusions that can be drawn concerning causal assertions about the effectiveness of services. It is thought that future research on service use for this population needs to include a comparison condition of other troubled youth, perhaps runaway/homeless youth not seeking crisis services. Features of the sampling strategy limited the generalization of the findings. Since the sample included only service-using youth, it is not generalizable to the entire runaway/homeless population. The authors believed that the youth in this sample were representative of the population of service-using runaway/homeless youth from Missouri, Illinois, Nebraska, and Kansas. However, other research has suggested that this population is not representative of…...

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References

Pollio, David E., Thompson, Sanna J., Tobias, Lisa, Reid, Donna and Spitznagel, Edward.

(2006). Longitudinal Outcomes for Youth Receiving Runaway/Homeless Shelter

Services. Journal of Youth & Adolescence. 35(5), p. 852-859.

Housing and Homelessness in Canada
In Canada, there is a problem with homelessness. While that is certainly not unique to the country, it is a significant issue which has to be addressed in order to facilitate changes that can lower the number of homeless people in the country. The majority of these people live in the larger cities and do have some access to resources, but the problems with homelessness have still kept growing in complexity and size over recent years. The demographics of the people who are most often seen as homeless are changing, as well, putting younger and more vulnerable people on the streets. There are estimates that 0.5% of the population does not have a home at all, and some believe that those estimates only represent about 1/2 of the actual population of homeless people throughout Canada (Fortin, 2008). Part of the problem with not being certain how…...

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References

Fortin, V. (2008). "Keep Your Coins, I Want Change! The Homeless and the Shrinking Public Space in Montreal" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Law and Society Association, Hilton Bonaventure, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Frankish, C., Hwang, S., & Quantz, D. (2005). Homelessness and health in Canada: Research lessons and priorities. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 96(2).

Gaetz, S., Tarasuk, V., Dackner, N., Kirkpatrick, S. (2006). "Managing" Homeless Youth in Toronto: Mismanaging Food Access & Nutritional Well-being. Canadian Review of Social Policy, 58(43), 1-19.

Hulchanski, J.D. (2009). Conference keynote address, Growing Home: Housing and Homelessness in Canada. University of Calgary, February 18, 2009, Canadian Policy Research Networks. Retrieved from  http://www.cprn.org/documents/51110_EN.pdf .

Family homelessness has emerged as a serious global problem and over the last twenty-five years the make-up of the homeless population has changed significantly in the United States (Swick Pp). The majority of the homeless were men in the early 1980's, however, today, families make up thirty percent of the homeless population, and some scholars suggest that families may constitute up to forty to fifty percent of the homeless (Swick Pp).
The United States federal government defines homeless individuals as those lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, or those who have a primary nighttime residence that is:

*a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations

(including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill);

*an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or *a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation…...

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Bibliography

Swick, Kevin J. "The dynamics of families who are homeless: implications for early childhood educators." Childhood Education. 3/22/2004; Pp.

This article focuses on articulating the various dynamics of families who are homeless and what strategies can be employed to effectively support homeless families with young children.

Washington, Thomas Alex. "The homeless need more than just a pillow, they need a pillar: an evaluation of a transitional housing program."

Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Human Services. 3/1/2002; Pp.

("Qualitative research...," 2008, Sampling Issues section)
Groenwald (2004) also stresses that in regard to the phenomenon the researcher identifies/describes, the unique or minority voices serve as vital counterpoints to relate.

Data Collection Method

To complement the proposed study's literature review, the researcher plans to interview a minimum of 10 professional individuals who regularly work with underinsured and/or uninsured youth. The researcher notes three types of interviews" a) the unstructured interview, which constitutes a formal, conversational interview without any predetermined questions; (b) the structured interview, where the interviewer utilizes a series of pre-established questions in the same order to obtain information from those he/she interviews; - the semi-structured interview, where the interviewer asks numerous open-ended questions that simultaneously mirror the researcher's perception of theoretical perspective.

CONCLUSION

egarding the phenomenon being researched, as Groenwald (2004) stresses, the unique or minority voices prove to be vital counterpoints for the researcher to bring out. During the course of…...

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References

Brindis, C.D., Morreale, M.C., & English, a. (2003). The Unique Health care needs of adolescents. The Future of Children, 13(1), 116+. Retrieved March 4, 2009, from Questia database:  http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5002004881 

Ensign, Josephine. Quality of health care: the views of homeless youth. Health Services Research. Health Research and Educational Trust. (2004). Retrieved March 04, 2009 from HighBeam Research:

 http://www.highbeam.com /doc/1G1119950467.html

Dereshiwsky, M. (1999). Electronic Textbook - Let Us Count the Ways: Strategies for Doing Qualitative Research. Northern Arizona University. Retrieved March 4, 2009, at  http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~mid/edr725/class/strategies/strategies/reading2-1-1.html

esearch Paper: Challenges with Younger Youth Aging Out of Foster CareIntroductionAlthough well intentioned, the foster care system often places youth in a precarious position once they age out of the program. Evidence suggest that foster care youth often experience trouble securing stable housing, difficulty in juggling work and school responsibilities, and overall healthy development. These elements also harm foster care youth in their ability to properly matriculate into society. Other issues related to the foster care system itself, along with social workers and practitioners also presents foster care application issues. Here practitioners are often ill-equipped to handle the overall transition of adolescents. Likewise, they may have a lack of experience to properly ascertain and help foster care youth to matriculate into adulthood. These elements all coalescence into an adverse circumstance in which many foster kids are subjected to harsh conditions immediately after they leave foster care. In addition to the…...

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References1. ACF (2017). Number of Children in Foster Care Continues to Increase. Administration for Children and Families. Washington, DC: Children’s Bureau. 2. ACF (2019). The AFCARS Report #26. Administration for Children and Families. Washington, DC: Children’s Bureau. Retrieved from: default/files/cb/afcarsreport26.pdf. 3. Adams, E., Hassett, A., & Lumsden, V. (2018). What do we know about the impact of stress on foster carers and contributing factors? Adoption & Fostering, 42(4), 338–353. 4. Ahn, H., Greeno, E. J., Bright, C. L., Hartzel, S., & Reiman, S. (2017). A survival analysis of the length of foster parenting duration and implications for recruitment5. Bauman, L., Silver, E., & Stein, R. (2006). Cumulative social disadvantage and child health. Pediatrics, 117(4), 1321–1328. Retrieved from http://www.pediatricsdigest. mobi/content/117/4/1321.short. 6. Benach, J., Vives, A., Amable, M., Vanroelen, C., Tarafa, G., & Muntaner, C. (2014). Precarious employment: Understanding an emerging social determinant of health. Annual Review of Public Health, 35, 229–253. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurevpublhealth-032013-182500. 7. Bender, K., Yang, J., Ferguson, K., & Thompson, S. (2015). Experiences and needs of homeless youth with a history of foster care. Children and Youth Services Review, 55(August), 222–231.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.06.007 .8. Berzin, S. C., Rhodes, A. M., & Curtis, M.a. (2011). Housing experiences of former foster youth: How do they fare in comparison to other youth? Children and Youth Services Review, 33(11), 2119–2126.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2011.06.018 . 9. Blome, W. W. (1997). What happens to foster kids: Educational experiences of a random sample of foster care youth and a matched group of non-foster youth. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 14(1), 41–53. http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A. 10. Brown, A., Courtney, M. E., & McMillen, J. C. (2015). Behavioral health needs and service use among those who\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'ve aged-out of foster care. Children and Youth Services Review, 58, 163–169.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.09.020 .11. Osgood, D. W., Foster, E. M., & Courtney, M. E. (2010). Vulnerable populations and the transition to adulthood. The Future of Children, 20(1), 209–229. http://dx.doi.org/10. 1353/foc.0.0047. 12. Padgett, D. K. (2006). Housing first services for people who are homeless with co-occurring serious mental illness and substance abuse. Research on Social Work Practice, 16, 74–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1049731505282593. 13. Pecora, P. J., Kessler, R. C., O\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'Brien, K., White, C. R., Williams, J., Hiripi, E., ... Herrick, M. A. (2006). Educational and employment outcomes of adults formerly placed in foster care: Results from the northwest foster care alumni study. Children and Youth Service2https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/

EACTION PAPE eaction PaperPart 1The research article selected for this paper was titled, Acceptability of a Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention for HIV Prevention among Youth Experiencing Homelessness: A Qualitative Analysis. In this particular article, Acorda, Jones, and Maria (2021) seek to assess both the impact and acceptableness of interventions that embrace technology in efforts to attenuate or reduce the risks of contracting HIV among youths experiencing homelessness (YEH). More specifically, the authors seek to evaluate the acceptability and impacts of an app-based just-in-time adaptive intervention for HIV prevention from the YEH perspective.The model used in the development of the intervention was the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills (IMB) approach. The model has been used in diverse contexts in efforts to highlight or pinpoint behavioral change determinants. According to the authors of the present study, the model posits that individuals need relevant health information, motivation, and behavioral skills in order to initiate and maintain health…...

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ReferencesAcorda, D.E., Jones, J.T. & Maria, D.S. (2021). Acceptability of a Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention for HIV Prevention among Youth Experiencing Homelessness: A Qualitative Analysis. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 32(2), 25-42.   https://doi.org/10.1353/hpu.2021.0049 

Often children must withhold information from people who could help them as public awareness of their homelessness would likely end in separation from loved ones as for children a greater number of programs exist to help them independently than collectively with their parents. Homeless youth are also a significant social issue and their numbers are hard to even estimate, though there are clear indications that the numbers are growing. "Novac, Serge, Eberle, and Brown (2002) identified four important trends among homeless youth: 1) the incidence is increasing; 2) an increasing number are chronically homeless; 3) the age at which youth become homeless is decreasing, especially for females; and 4) more identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered." (Wingert, Higgitt & istock, 2005, p. 54) the issue, like with that of other homeless populations is developing systems that build transitions to more stable and permanent housing. (Wingert, Higgitt & istock,…...

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References

Calhoun, J. (2006). Proven Pathways to Violence Prevention. Reclaiming Children and Youth, 15(1), 19.

Canada, G. (2001). The Best Way We Know How. Reclaiming Children and Youth, 10(1), 54.

Conderman, G., Heimerl, a.M., & Ketterhagen, B.L. (2001). Longing for a Father. Reclaiming Children and Youth, 10(3), 140.

Craig, T.K.J. Hodson, S. (1998) Homeless youth in London: I. Childhood antecedents and psychiatric disorder. Psychological Medicine. 28:1379-1388.

1. The Harsh Realities of Being a Homeless Youth

2. Finding Hope in the Midst of Despair

3. Building a Community When Alone

4. Overcoming Stereotypes and Stigmas

5. The Path to Stability and Success

1. Alone on the Streets: My Journey Through Homelessness

2. Finding Shelter: A Young Person's Odyssey

3. The Unseen World: Life as an Unaccompanied Youth

4. Surviving the Night: Tales from the Underside

5. From Despair to Hope: My Homeless Journey