Status of Mental Health in Older Adults: Treatment and Prevention

*Healthcare Access - Regional Overviews*

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**Chapter 10**

**Abstract**

public health concern.

**1. Introduction**

the year 2050, to nearly 93,000 [3].

**Keywords:** older adults, mental health, homelessness

Exploring Mental Health

Homeless Older Adults

*Ramona Bullock-Johnson and Karen Bullock*

Treatment and Prevention among

Homelessness is an issue of social justice, in the United States, because it leaves people vulnerable, unsafe, and ill, while not having their basic needs for food and shelter met. Although the United States is the wealthiest country in the world, a significant number of its residence, whether citizens or not, have experienced homelessness in their lifetime. Less than 5 years ago, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) found that 564,708 people are homeless on any given night. There is a dearth of information available that puts older adults at the forefront or at the center of homelessness epidemic. Moreover, recent HUD reports claim that homelessness has decreased, in the United States, while the National Center on Family Homelessness reported that the number of residents experiencing homelessness is steadily climbing and is expected to hit an historic high, within the next 5 years. Yet, most of the attention given to homelessness as a public health issues, tends to focus on families and children. Few studies have targeted older adults and their primary risk factors experiencing homelessness. Important to note is the fact that consistent data and accurate reporting about homeless older adults are few and far between. This chapter (1) presents a practical definition of homelessness, (2) provides a social work framework for understanding and assessing risk among homeless populations, as well as, (3) emphasizes the importance of cultural competence in health practices for addressing homelessness among older adults as a

The United States, the population is aging, and increasingly more adults are aging into poverty. At the same time, housing is becoming more unaffordable and the costs of health care are rising, leaving older adults at risk of poverty and homelessness [1]. Healthcare access for older adults is an important public health issue to be addressed globally. In the United States, approximately 10,000 people turn age 65 daily, and as the population ages in general, the prevalence of homeless among older adults remain constant [2]. Based on recent demographic trends, the more than 44,000 older adult population accounted for in 2010 will more than double by
