Health Needs Assessment of People Experiencing Homelessness in Croydon
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Health Needs Assessment of People Experiencing Homelessness in Croydon
IRAS ID
274073
Contact name
Rachel Burge
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Croydon Health Services NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 6 months, 1 days
Research summary
The study we propose is a mixed methods study analysing the health needs of people experiencing homelessness across multiple sites across Croydon. Research based in the hospital and in the community in Croydon, United Kingdom.
Homelessness is on the rise. Data from national government statistics show the number of rough sleepers has doubled between year 2000 to 2016. The average age of death of homeless people is 44 years according to data collected by the nation’s leading homeless charity, Crisis.
We aim to review the health needs of the homeless population in Croydon, by completing a health assessment survey for all people who fit the following definition of homelessness at our chosen research sites.
The definition of homelessness we will use for this study is as follows. People are considered to be homeless if they do not have a home. This includes someone with nowhere to stay and living on the streets or in parks, those staying with family and friends (sofa-surfing), those staying in a hostel or B&B, night shelter or temporary accommodation. It includes people squatting, living in poor housing conditions that pose a risk to health or safety and those people who are at risk of homelessness in the next 56 days.
The survey collects basic demographic information, personal history including lived experiences of homelessness and exposure to institutionalisation. We will also ask about medical history including physical and mental health problems and drug/alcohol use. We will collect data on cognition, mood and frailty using validated screening tools which can be compared to age-matched controls in the community. We hope to collect quantitative and qualitative data regarding experience and use of services, to gain an insight into accessibility, barriers and attitudes to services from the point of service users. The research project will run until July 2020.
REC name
London - Harrow Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/LO/0050
Date of REC Opinion
22 Jan 2020
REC opinion
Unfavourable Opinion