Housing as an intervention on hospital use: access among chronically homeless persons with disabilities

A study examining demographics and hospital utilization for chronically homeless persons with disabilities was conducted at pre-housing enrollment and at 6 months post-housing. Of the 20 participants, 70% (n = 14) were Black American and 30% (n = 6) were White; 100% (n = 20) were non-Hispanic; 90% (n = 18) were men; 40% (n = 8) were veterans; Median years since last permanent housing and total homelessness were 7 and 10.5 respectively. The following increases were observed: employment (0 to 1); income (20%, n = 4 to 35%, n = 7); primary care (25%, n = 5 to 95%, n = 19); and mental health service use (25%, n = 5 to 60%, n = 12). Known disabilities included HIV (15%, n = 3); hepatitis C (45%, n = 9); mental illness (60%, n = 12) and substance abuse (80%, n = 16) with 45% (n = 9) dually diagnosed. Over the course of the study, Emergency department visits and inpatient hospitalization use decreased. While these differences were not statistically significant (p = 0.14 and p = 0.31, respectively), they translate to an estimated $250,208 savings.