“A hand up into housing is a hand up into hope and a future” – national project studies housing and mental illness

An ambitious research project launched on November 23, 2009, will evaluate the effectiveness of providing housing to homeless people struggling with mental illness in five Canadian cities.

CAMH Senior Scientist Dr. Paula Goering (L) is research lead of a national study on housing and mental illness. Susan Gapka, chair of CAMH’s Empowerment Council, sits on the national Consumer Panel.

The CAMH scientist serving as national research lead for At Home/Chez Soi hopes that the careful gathering of evidence will serve to convince government and other decision-makers that “chronic homelessness is not something that we have to live with.”

“We must find the answers to the questions of what works, with whom does it work, and how does it work,” said Dr. Paula Goering, Section Head of CAMH’s Health Systems and Research Consulting Unit, at the official launch of Toronto’s regional project part of At Home/Chez Soi, which is funded by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC). See her describe this project in the video below.

“Another research question is cost,” Paula said. “Will it cost less to house and provide services than it would if these marginalized individuals were in hospitals, prisons and shelters?”

The study is based on the ‘Housing First’ approach – the premise that homelessness and mental illness should be addressed by quickly providing housing, followed by the other assistance and services someone needs.

Homelessness – in numbers - Between one-quarter and half of Toronto’s 5,000 homeless people live with mental illness - Toronto spent $160 million on homelessness – more than on parks & recreation, transportation and public health  (MHCC) - A man in a Toronto shelter today has only a 30% chance of living to age 75 – the equivalent lifespan for a man living in Laos today, or in Toronto in 1921. (Dr. Stephen Hwang, At Home/Chez Soi Toronto research lead, St. Michael’s Hospital)

Susan Gapka is one of a several people with lived experience of mental illness and homelessness who serves on the MHCC National Consumer Panel. Susan, who also chairs CAMH’s independent Empowerment Council, spoke about leaving home as a teenager and struggling with mental health issues, and with housing problems.

Her life “turned around quickly” once she was able to secure housing, an outcome she hopes the study will provide for many others.

“A hand up into housing is a hand up into hope and a future,” said Susan, who’s had stable housing for 12 years and just completed a political science degree at York University.

At Home/Chez Soi is part of the federal government’s $110 million allocation to address homelessness and mental illness. It will run for five years in Vancouver, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montréal and Moncton, with a slightly different focus in each location depending on factors most in need of study. Winnipeg, for example, will focus on Aboriginal people while Toronto will focus on homeless people with mental illness who are also from diverse ethno-cultural groups.

The Toronto project will provide housing and service in eight different languages for up to 300 people, and compare progress with that of people receiving existing community services.

CAMH’s Dr. David Goldbloom, who serves as vice chair of the MHCC, spoke at the Moncton regional launch, which will focus in part on rural populations and the availability of services in English and French.

In the field and on the ground

At Home/Chez Soi is believed to be the largest and most ambitious undertaking of its kind ever attempted to address what Dr. Goering described as the “vexing” question of homeless and mental health.

“We are now in the field and on the ground, recruiting participants into our study and giving many of them a choice about where they want to live, as well as the offer of services and supports to help them become healthy citizens,” Paula said.  

The Toronto project is a partnership between the federal government, the City of Toronto, St. Michael’s Hospital and a number of agencies, including Housing Connections, COTA Health, Across Boundaries and Toronto North Support Services.

And it may already be bearing fruit. Gord Tanner, representing the city, told the audience at the launch event that they’ve already enrolled 19 people into the project and the first of these moved into their apartment last week.

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