Running head: VULNERABLE POPULATIONS

Vulnerable Populations BSHS/320

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The United States of America is the place known to many as the land of the free, home of the brave, and the place to start a better life. With any place that has good qualities, some have not so good qualities. The homeless population in the United States is at a staggering high, and many individuals are suffering because many lack employment/financial resources, housing resources, support from family and friends, and others negligence; such as natural disasters or fires. Homeless individuals may have no other choice than to live on the streets, trains, and alley ways to name a few places where homeless people seek shelter. The history of homelessness, social problems, demographics, common clinical issues, and intervention/future interventions will be explored to determinate how homelessness is caused and how it can diminish with time. Homelessness has been around for some time and is increasing with time. Homelessness was noticed soon after the Great Depression, which caused many people to lose his or hers home. During the Great Depression in the 1930, many families were no longer able to afford their homes and It is thought that over two million people were homeless at this time and suffered severely from hunger and extreme poverty (American History Of Homelessness, 2011). The Great Depression was an era of life where the stock market crashed and many where out of jobs and many lost their home. The Great Depression began in October 1929, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors. Consumer spending and investment dropped, causing steep declines in industrial output and rising levels of unemployment (The Great Depression, 2013). When the Great Depression occurred, many people lost their jobs and became homeless. For an individual to lose his or hers job, home, and investments can become overwhelming and also a huge social issue. The nature of the social problems that exist within the homeless population is hunger, drug addition, unemployment, and mental illnesses, to name a few. Individuals left with no

VULNERABLE POPULATIONS choice, but homelessness are more than likely to face several social issues. About 25% of homeless individuals suffer from some mental illness; the high cost of health insurance leave homeless people without access to proper care to treat mental illnesses. Drug and alcohol addiction affect about 20% of the homeless (National Student Campaign against Homelessness and Hunger, n.d). People who have no options rather than to sleep on the streets with no food, shelter, or health care insurance may develop some mental issues, which seem to be normal if one has no home or any other human support. Homelessness in general is a social issue because it involves poverty, which affects people over the world. The national poverty rate rose to include 13.2 % of the population and 1 in 7 people were at risk of suffering from hunger in the United States. In addition, 3.5 million people were forced to sleep in the streets (National Student Campaign against Homelessness and Hunger, n.d). The social issues surrounding this population of individuals have a huge demographic rate in the United States as well. Homelessness has a huge population that expands over the United States, and it is

growing, especially for those out of work and living in poverty. Persons living in poverty are at most risk of becoming homeless, and demographic groups who are more likely to experience poverty are also more likely to experience homelessness (Who Is Homeless, 2011). Homelessness can affect various groups of individuals such as any age, race, gender, or victims of domestic violence. Any individual can be rich today and lose all his or hers belonging tomorrow and become homeless. With the homeless population expanding into larger groups of people, other issues such as clinical should be addressed. As well as intervention strategies to assist with alternative housing options to prevent homelessness or to help one seek shelter. The clinical issues affecting the homeless individual can range from mental illness to health issues. Several clinical issues affect the homeless population because of lack of health

VULNERABLE POPULATIONS insurance and clinical resources. The clinical issues affecting homeless people are dental, vision, foot diseases, post-traumatic arthritis, HIV, TB, STDs respiratory infections, diabetes, hypertension, and nutritional problems are all major clinical issues (Zevin, 2013). Quite a few people are homeless and suffer from various clinical issues because they have no insurance, housing, support from family/friends, or program resources. It seems when populations such homelessness is so huge some are left behind with no help. Various social service organizations exist that cater to the homeless population, but so many individuals and families are not helped

because of mis-direction. Health care is an important factor to many, especially those who do not have access to a health care facility. Social services resources are available as well as the human service professionals. Those employed within these organizations or facilities are trained professionals who implement intervention strategies to assist with the issue at hand. In this case, issues surrounding the homeless population will be addressed. Strategic interventions can be implemented to ensure the individual can access food, visit a health care physician, and reconnect with family members. The human service professional who specializes in the homeless population would deliver services to individuals in need. For example, agencies such as the Health and Human Services are trained professionals working toward implementing action plans to help the homeless population. HHS is the United States governments principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and supporting the delivery of essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves (Leavitt, 2007). The homeless population would fall under the category for those who cannot help themselves. The human service professional or agency will implement strategies starting the process for the homeless individual. These intervention strategies can be meeting with the persons without shelter to discuss options. Providing resources such as: helping eligible

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homeless individuals with receiving health and social services, identify risks, and protective factors to prevent chronic homelessness among persons who are already homeless (Leavitt, 2007). In discussing options with the persons and implementing current intervention strategies; future intervention strategies should be put into place to prevent future homelessness. Future interventions for the homeless population should be included to prevent future homelessness and educate the population of individuals on various employment alternatives, health care options, social service agencies, eligibility status, and mental health counseling. The number of homeless can decrease with proper assistance from various human service and social service organizations. To ensure the increase of homelessness is not a factor, continuous funding is needed to operate, expand, and employ those qualified to work in this profession. Homelessness can be prevented with suitable funding and education on the issue. Allowing over a million people to become homeless every year has enormous economic, social, and human costs. The nation can learn from recent successful initiatives, and prevent the economic downturn and increasing poverty from creating a new class of homelessness (Increases in Homelessness on the Horizon, 2011). Providing government funding to various homeless programs will allow agencies to expand and prevent homelessness and remove homeless individuals from the streets into shelters. The future cannot be predicted, but steps to early prevention may help decrease this huge social issue. In conclusion, the homeless population is a huge social issue affecting many people all over the U.S. living in poverty. Homelessness can have emotional impact on woman, children, elderly, rich, or poor individuals to name a few. The people who suffer from homelessness have clinical issues that affect his or hers health while health insurance may not be available to them. A person with no health insurance, food, or shelter can begin to face many health challenges if

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they are not addressed. Social service agencies are available to most homeless individuals, but some do not know how to access the proper program for their needs. Certain agencies are operated to cater to the homeless population to provide intervention strategies to prevent further homeless issues. Some intervention strategies can be implemented for future preventions as well. Homelessness could decrease in time, but before this can happen, more resources, and human service professionals should be available.

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American history of homelessness. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.npach.org/americanhistory-of-homelessness.html Increases in homelessness on the horizon. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.endhomlessness.org/library/entry/increases-in-homelessness.html Leavitt, M. O. (2007) United States Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved from http://www.hhs.gov/homeless/research/endhomelessness.html National student campaign against homelessness and hunger. (n.d) Retrieved from http://studentsagainsthunger.org/page/hhp/overview-homelessness-america The Great Depression. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.history.com/topics/great-depression Who is homeless? (2011). Retrieved from http://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/who.html Zevin, B. (2013). Health Care and Multiple Diagnosis Issues of Homeless People. Retrieved from http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/insite?page=pr-06-03-01

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Vulnerable Populations