Older Homeless Adults: Can We Do More?

Excerpt

The average age of individuals experiencing homelessness is rising. Between the early 1990s and 2003, the proportion of homeless adults aged 50 and older increased from 11% to nearly one-third1. This trend continues. Demographic research has shown that for the last 20 years, adults born in the second half of the “baby boom” (mid-1950s to 1964) have experienced a sustained elevation in their risk of experiencing homelessness2. As this population ages, so does the average age of the homeless population. Prior research completed when the homeless population was younger showed that adults experiencing homelessness have higher rates of physical health, mental health and substance use problems than housed individuals3,4. Homelessness is associated with poor access to health care and high rates of Emergency Department visits and inpatient hospitalizations, and high rates of early mortality4‐7. Prior research has shown excess mortality within all age groups within the homeless populations, but differences in causes of death by age group. The elevated mortality among younger homeless adults is caused by trauma, infectious diseases and complications of substance use7. In contrast, mortality among older homeless adults is caused by heart disease and cancer5,8. Thus, the aging of the homeless population raises important clinical questions about health priorities among this population. …