On a drizzly day last fall, at the familiar corner near the Carter Center where I gave away the very first lunch, lunches #9 and #10 found homes with two homeless men. One was soliciting while the other laid under a tree nearby appearing to be very unwell. While I often feel invigorated by my small act of service, that day I drove off feeling pretty ill myself. I had come face to face with a basic fact of life for homeless people- a lot of them are sick. Really sick.
Of course, we can’t factor out mental illness here even if we wanted to. Most estimates place the rate of serious (Axis I) mental illness among the homeless at around 40%. This and addiction (up to 50%) are very serious obstacles to getting off the streets, and are in fact the root cause of homelessness in many cases.
But even once one looks beyond those factors (which of course inhibit the diagnosis and proper treatment of other illnesses and injuries), the rate of health problems amongst the homeless is significantly higher than the general population. Contagious diseases like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, infections of all types, unchecked diabetes and other chronic illnesses, injuries from street violence and crime, diseases from exposure such as frost bite and sunburn, serious dental decay, and malnutrition all top the list. Many have had negative experiences with health care providers or institutions. Not knowing where or how to access preventative care means that many small problems are pushed off until they are life-threatening.
In fact, a chronic or sudden serious health problem can be the reason someone ends up on the street to begin with. “Homelessness is often the result of a downward spiral that begins with a person’s health problem and escalates into employment, financial, and housing problems,” according to the National Health Care for the Homeless Council. They warn that the state of the economy today puts the 1.2 million families on waiting lists for subsidized housing at risk of homelessness- they could be one paycheck or illness away from living on the street, in a vehicle or at a shelter.
Shortly after giving this lunch away, I was given the opportunity to volunteer at a local Health Day for the Homeless and I snapped it up. What do you think can be done about filling this giant, gaping hole in our society?
It’s a really sad situation, Claire. I’ve heard it said that you can judge a society by the way they treat the least among them.
We have similar problems here in the UK, although the situation is helped somewhat, I expect, by the fact that we have universal free healthcare. We also have state-funded homeless ‘shelters’ where treatment can be provided… do you have anything similar in the US? What kind of treatment is available for addiction in the US?
From an LDS point of view, I wonder how welcome an alcoholic homeless person would feel in one of our churches – or even approaching the Church for help? I hope that the Word of Wisdom doesn’t act to turn away the most needy: any experiences?