Homelessness and Mental Illness

Homeless in America

What does mental illness look like?

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Mental IllnessOrganic Brain Disorders

-Degenerative Diseases

-Cardiovascular

-Trauma

Mental IllnessMood and Anxiety Disorders

-Depression

-Anxiety

-Phobias

-Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

-Bi-polar affective disorder

-Post Traumatic Stress disorder

-Panic disorders

Mental IllnessPersonality Disorders

-Odd, Unusual Behavior: Paranoid personality, schizoid personality.

-Dramatic or Erratic Behavior: anti-social personality, borderline personality, histronic personality, narcisstic personality

-Anxious/Fearful: hypersensitivity, dependent, obsessive-compulsive disorder

Psychotic DisordersSchizophrenia

Schizoaffective disorder

Delusional Disorder

How does a Mental Illness Occur?

One-half of all lifetime cases of mental illness begin by age 14, three-quarters by age 24 .

Fewer than one-third of adults and one-half of children with a diagnosable mental disorder receive mental health services in a given year.

Kessler,R.,Berglund,P.,Demler,O.,Jin,R.,Merikangas,&Walters,e.,Lifetimeprevalenceandage-of-onsetdistributionsofDSM-IVdisordersintheNationalCo-morbiditySurveyReplication (NCSR).General Psychiatr y,62,June2005,593-602.

U.S.Depar tmentofHealthandHumanServices.MentalHealth:ARepor toftheSurgeonGeneral.Rockville,Md.,U.S.Depar tmentofHealthandHumanServices,SubstanceAbuseandMental HealthServicesAdministration,CenterforMentalHealthServices,1999,pp.408409,411.

Stigma

Homelessness and Mental Illness

30% of the homeless population suffer from a mental illness.

“Untreated mental illness can cause individuals to become paranoid, anxious, or depressed, making it difficult or impossible to maintain employment, pay bills, or keep supportive social relationships.” “Individuals with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders are among the most difficult groups to put in stable housing and treat. This is due to the limited availability of integrated mental health and substance abuse treatment in most locations. “http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/homelessness/

"The rate of mental disorders among homeless people is useful information for advocacy and for monitoring policy and practice change in a community.”http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081201233443.htm

Why are the mentally ill homeless?

Unclaimed benefits, need for identification

“Up to 50 percent have co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders”

“The majority of people with serious mental illnesses who are homeless had prior contact with the mental health system, either as an inpatient or outpatient. These experiences were not always positive; they may have been hospitalized involuntarily or given treatment services or medications that did not benefit them.”

“The social support and family networks of these individuals usually have unraveled. Those who are members of families often have lost regular contact with their relatives or are no longer equipped to be primary caregivers.”

http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/homelessness/

The Austin ClubhouseThe Austin Clubhouse is a program

where people who are mentally ill can go to receive support and gain the skills needed to reintroduce them back into society and find jobs.

Creates positive environment for the members and will give members opportunities to succeed.

Projected launch in late 2010

Change is Possible

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