According to recent studies by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs and the Journal of the American Medical Association, the prevalence and bidirectional relationship of mental health issues among people experiencing homelessness have been strongly documented.
Patterns of mental illness make it difficult to maintain employment, stable housing and supportive relationships, causing some people to find themselves homeless. Once homeless, mental illness often increases or is at least not remediated. Though day shelters and other supportive services help to address this issue, research in conjunction with the “Housing First” model shows that the location of stable housing and mental health rehabilitation is the best long-term solution.
While the recently launched Operation SAFE reasonably prioritizes public safety and non-camping measures on state property, the question now becomes: Where will the homeless go, and how will they be accommodated? With shelters at capacity and other resources highly strained in various cities, the need for housing necessarily increases; however, with the trend mentioned above, the acquisition of stable housing is most tenable when people experiencing homelessness also engage with mental health support…