Table 1.
Characteristics of homeless participants
| Characteristic | Overall (N=1165) |
Medical/surgical Hospitalization (N=227) |
Psychiatric Hospitalization (N=134) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Predisposing Factors | |||
| Demographic group, n (%) | |||
| Single adult male | 587 (50.4) | 127 (56.0) | 70 (52.2) |
| Single adult female | 296 (25.4) | 60 (26.4) | 52 (38.8) |
| Family adult | 282 (24.2) | 40 (17.6) | 12 (9.0) |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 36.1 (12.4) | 40.1 (13.4) | 35.6 (11.4) |
| Lifetime duration of homelessness, n (%) | |||
| Less than 2 years | 584 (50.1) | 106 (46.7) | 55 (41.0) |
| 2 years or more | 581 (49.9) | 121 (53.3) | 79 (59.0) |
| Race/ethnicity, n (%) | |||
| White | 650 (55.8) | 139 (61.2) | 76 (56.7) |
| Black | 260 (22.3) | 36 (15.9) | 30 (22.4) |
| Aboriginal | 96 (8.2) | 29 (12.8) | 12 (9.0) |
| Other visible minorities | 159 (13.7) | 23 (10.1) | 16 (11.9) |
| Place of birth, n (%) | |||
| Canada | 796 (68.3) | 173 (76.2) | 97 (72.4) |
| Outside Canada | 369 (31.7) | 54 (23.8) | 37 (27.6) |
| Highest level of education, n (%) | |||
| Some high school or less | 587 (50.5) | 123 (54.2) | 72 (53.7) |
| High school diploma or equivalent | 248 (21.3) | 39 (17.2) | 25 (18.7) |
| College/vocational training or higher | 327 (28.1) | 65 (28.6) | 37 (27.6) |
| History of traumatic brain injury, n (%) | 553 (47.6) | 115 (50.7) | 63 (47.4) |
| Physical assault in past 12 months, n (%) | 330 (28.6) | 70 (31.1) | 35 (26.1) |
| Sexual assault in past 12 months, n (%) | 63 (5.5) | 20 (8.9) | 12 (9.0) |
| Current smoker, n (%) | 826 (71.0) | 173 (76.2) | 110 (82.1) |
| Alcohol problem in past 30 days,a n (%) | 339 (29.1) | 72 (31.7) | 36 (26.9) |
| Drug problem in past 30 days,a n (%) | 458 (39.1) | 96 (42.3) | 57 (42.5) |
| Mental health problem in past 30 days,a n (%) | 438 (37.6) | 91 (40.1) | 83 (61.9) |
| Propensity to underseek care score, n (%) | |||
| 0 | 670 (57.5) | 135 (59.5) | 64 (47.8) |
| 1 | 228 (19.6) | 45 (19.8) | 32 (23.9) |
| 2 or more | 267 (22.9) | 47 (20.7) | 38 (28.4) |
| Enabling Factors | |||
| Monthly income, n (%) | |||
| <$500 | 562 (49.5) | 96 (43.1) | 62 (46.6) |
| $500–$999 | 313 (27.6) | 74 (33.2) | 47 (35.3) |
| ≥$1,000 | 260 (22.9) | 53 (23.8) | 24 (18.1) |
| Has a primary care provider, n (%) | 865 (74.4) | 190 (83.7) | 107 (79.9) |
| Unmet need for health care, n (%) | 192 (16.5) | 37 (16.3) | 23 (17.2) |
| Unmet need for mental health care, n (%) | 121 (10.5) | 28 (12.4) | 28 (21.1) |
| Competing priorities, n (%) | 62 (5.3) | 11 (4.9) | 10 (7.5) |
| MHLC internal subscale score, mean (SD) | 27.6 (5.5) | 27.2 (6.0) | 26.2 (6.3) |
| MHLC chance subscale score, mean (SD) | 19.6 (6.4) | 19.8 (6.3) | 19.8 (6.8) |
| MHLC powerful others subscale score, mean (SD) | 21.0 (6.9) | 22.4 (6.5) | 21.9 (6.5) |
| Social support – loan, n (%) | 647 (68.0) | 110 (64.7) | 64 (59.3) |
| Social support – ride to appointment, n (%) | 551 (58.0) | 88 (51.8) | 48 (44.4) |
| Social support – suicide, n (%) | 655 (69.5) | 114 (67.1) | 56 (51.9) |
| Need Factors | |||
| PCS-12 score, mean (SD) | 46.0 (11.2) | 41.4 (12.5) | 43.7 (12.1) |
| MCS-12 score, mean (SD) | 40.7 (13.2) | 40.0 (12.8) | 38.2 (12.8) |
| Number of chronic health conditions,b n (%) | |||
| None | 470 (40.4) | 54 (23.8) | 49 (36.6) |
| 1 | 324 (27.8) | 58 (25.6) | 34 (25.4) |
| 2 | 202 (17.4) | 54 (23.8) | 25 (18.7) |
| 3 or more | 168 (14.4) | 61 (26.9) | 26 (19.4) |
a
Alcohol, drug, and mental health problems in the past 30 days were assessed using the Addiction Severity Index (ASI).18–20
PCS = Physical Component Summary; MCS = Mental Component Summary; MHLC = Multidimensional Health Locus of Control; SD = standard deviation
b
Chronic health conditions include diabetes; anemia; hypertension; heart disease and stroke; liver problems (including chronic viral hepatitis); arthritis or joint problems; cancer; physical handicaps; or HIV/AIDS.