The Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute at the University of South Florida is evaluating interventions to prevent homelessness among individuals with severe mental illness who may also have substance abuse problems in the Tampa/St. Petersburg Florida area. Within a quasi-experimental design with non-equivalent control groups, the Boley Homelessness Prevention Project (BHPP), which provides an array of housing, housing-support services, and psychosocial services, is being compared to two control programs. The Suncoast (SC) program provides psychosocial services but not housing and housing support services and the Project Return (PR) program provides housing and housing supports but not psychosocial services to the same population. Preliminary analysis of the data suggests that the BHPP and the PR programs decrease both literal and functional homelessness when compared to the SC program. The BHPP and PR programs are associated with higher service utilization and fewer unmet needs than the SC program. No differences between the programs have been found on measures of quality of life, mental health, or self-reported physical health.
Learning Objectives: At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: Describe the role of housing and housing support services in a Florida program to prevent and reduce homelessness. Analyze the relative importance of providing housing, housing-support services, and psychosocial services in reducing homelessness among those with serious mental illness. Evaluate the roles of service utilization and unmet services need as predictors of positive housing outcomes for individuals with serious mental illness
Keywords: Homelessness, Mental Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.