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Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique logoLink to Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique
. 2006 Nov 1;97(6):445–447. doi: 10.1007/BF03405225

Youth Homelessness

A Call for Partnerships between Research and Policy

Sean A Kidd 15,, Larry Davidson 25
PMCID: PMC6975745  PMID: 17203722

Abstract

Homeless youth present significant challenges both to youth workers and policy-makers seeking to develop better prevention and intervention strategies. This article discusses the compelling need for researchers and policy-makers to make efforts to work collaboratively to develop improved social policy informed by research findings.

MeSH terms: Homeless youth, health policy, stereotyping

Footnotes

Acknowledgements: This work was supported with grants from the Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

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