Year: 2016
Type: book
Abstract: BackgroundResearch 1,2,3,4 suggests that the prevalence of traumatic brain injury in the homeless population is much higher than in the general population.This is consistent with general poor health amongst homeless people 5 .The consequences of TBI can pose particular problems for homeless people.People with a TBI may be reluctant to seek help, and even if they do receive appropriate brain injury support, the long term neurological effects of their brain injuries combined with their lack of stable housing may leave them unable to rely on family, or to implement some of the strategies suggested for cognitive rehabilitation, for example establishing routines to build functional independence.In addition, maintaining health status and managing health conditions after a brain injury is challenging for brain injured people 6,7 .The causal relationship between TBI and homelessness is not established, yet studies have shown very high rates (70% 8 and 90% 9 ) of homeless people with a brain injury reporting their first injury occurring before they became homeless.The reported prevalence of TBI amongst the homeless population suggests this is a significant issue, yet TBI is seldom mentioned in homelessness research and strategies. MethodsThis research was co-produced by the Head Injury and Homelessness Research Group, and was led by Steph Grant, a brain injury survivor with experience of homelessness.We recruited participants through Ben's Centre for Vulnerable People 10 , who used the Brain Injury Screening Index 11 to ascertain if people had a history of head injury and were likely to have sustained a TBI.Interviews were conducted in the summer of 2016 by Steph Grant and Alistair Atherton together and a total of five men were interviewed for the research.All interviews were held at Ben's Centre for Vulnerable People, a place deemed to be safe and familiar for the interviewees.The Head Injury and Homelessness Research Group transcribed and analysed the interview material, with additional analysis meetings being held with academics and other stakeholders.This report was co-produced by the Head Injury and Homelessness Research Group in September 2016.The research was led by Steph Grant, a brain injury survivor with experience of homelessness For further information about this research please
Authors: Steph Grant, Alistair Atherton, Jennifer Brooks, Matthew Colbeck, Deborah Fortescue, Dave Vanderhoven
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Impact Fund
OpenAlex ID: W2560942011