The exercise intervention used in this study also assessed physical fitness
Evaluation of effects of housing first for homeless with drug use and psychiatric problems.
Håkan Källmén,and Mats Blid.For more information contact:
Håkan Källmen
STAD, Centre for Psychiatric Research, Teknologatan 8E 113 60, Stockholm.
E-mail: hakan.kallmen@.ki.se Telephone:+46 08 12345 501
Preliminary results:
Preliminary results show that former homeless who received apartment still lives there at 6 months
follow-up. However, they did not report an
improved psychological well-being compared with the control group and did not change their drug
use.
Introduction
“Housing first” is a program to prevent
homelessness. It builds on a philosophy of harm reduction and a view on homeless people as in need of housing on same conditions as others.
Housing First can also be seen as an intervention to make a more structured life and improve the
health and decrease drug use of the homeless.
Method
In this study 18 homeless people in Stockholm and Helsingborg participated and were assigned for an apartment in the housing first programme and they were compared to 35 homeless people of the same category housed in the staircase model (control
group).
We used a quasi-experimental non-equivalent control group design with a pre-test and six post- tests. Alcohol habits were assessed using the
AUDIT and drug use was assessed by DUDIT.
Psychological health was approximated by measuring Locus of control and Sense of
coherence. Data about health care consumption, criminality and incomes were collected through registers.
Study aim
To explore if the housing first trial leads to 1.An exit from homelessness 2. An improved psychological wellbeing and 3. A decreased alcohol and drug use
.
Håkan Källmén is Associate Professor at STAD, Center for Psychiatry Research and the main investigator of Housing First in Stockholm City.
Mats Blid is a senior lecturer in Social Work at Miidsweden University in Östersund
