However, if the jobs are not there, they may become homeless. We then present the Executive Summary as the featured reading below (although we encourage you to use the links within the document to read the report in its entirety to learn even more). What are the treatments that improve mental health, and do they work? When we ask why young people become homeless, we must consider that it is because our systems and institutions fail to prevent it from occurring. How can we begin to decolonize society and decrease Indigenous homelessness? 2. The research on youth homelessness in Canada and the United States is pretty consistent. Dr. CherylForchuk: Is Housing First a solution to homelessness? Recently there have been changes to the child welfare system within Ontario to increase the age at which young people can receive financial support. (47:09), This picture depicts the Homeless and the problems and solutions available Makaya Moreau, A life of judgement. This is a reminder for those who have turned on theAutoplaysetting to manually pause the video when the speakers are done to avoid having it autoplay through to the next video. There are many reasons young people become homeless, but three intersectional core dynamics emerge in research and clinical practice.
In this video, Dr. Katrina Milaney explains that young people who become homeless have often experienced higher rates of adverse childhood events (ACEs) and involvement with the child welfare system. He explains that while each person will have their own experience, the research shows high rates of family conflict and abuse. (16:06), Jessica Rumboldt: The need for on-going open and vulnerable discussions. Dr. Jeff Karabanow: How can support workers prevent becoming burned out? Research in Halifax about public perceptions of young people on the streets showed that the small majority was deeply compassionate and empathetic. Many of these youth do not want to be in the child welfare system. This includes foster care, group homes, interventions by the Childrens Aid Society. In this video, Dr. Naomi Nichols explains that there are many reasons some young people become homeless and that their experiences may be episodic or longer-term and more pronounced. Podcast: How are the causes of Indigenous homelessness rooted in on-going colonizing practices? Dr. Karabanow notes that when young people leave home it is a rational and deliberate process, where they consider how they will get through a situation, think deeply about it, and weigh their options. First, there may be deep family dysfunction such as addiction, mental health issues, sibling issues, or a lack of acceptance of a young persons sexual orientation that creates an unsafe home environment for young people. Dr. Jacqueline Kennelly: How can communities implement better support programs? Without proper access to internet and technology, many young people have lost connection to critical social services during COVID-19. Dr. Bill OGrady: How can communities implement better support programs? GenNext East Ontario is powered by United Way East Ontario, a registered Canadian charity. (16:33), Dr. Bill OGrady: The need for improved hospital discharge practices, Dr. Naomi Nichols: Discharging youth from the hospital to the parking lot, Dr. Tyler Frederick: Exiting hospitals into shelters. Dr. Stephen Gaetz: Why do some young people become homeless? Actually, we know quite a lot. This suggests the need to better understand what leads youth to the streets and what keeps them there. When young people leave home it is a rational and deliberate process, considered crossing the edge, where they consider how they will get through a situation, think deeply about it, and weigh their options. Systemic causes are related to policy failings in public systems, such as criminal justice, child welfare, and education. Among the most commonly identified systems-level pathways into youth homeless is that of child welfare, such as residing in foster care. Podcast: What are the treatments, and do they work? Dr. John Ecker: Why is there a high rate of homelessness in the LGBTQ2S+ community? He explains that we need to consider this issue from a person in environment perspective which entails the micro environment of the family one is born into, the mezzo environment of the neighbourhood one is raised in, and the macro environment of societal policies, cultures, values, and norms. The COH is the curator of the Homeless Hub. Dr. Jacqueline Kennelly: What are the challenges these young people face? How can support workers prevent becoming burned out? While child welfare involvement is a systemic pathway into homelessness for many young people in Canada, it is even more so for Indigenous youth. It is expensive and landlords may discriminate against young people. Young people become homeless for many reasons, including because society fails to prevent it from occur, The risk factors that contribute to youth homelessness are clear. Republication or distribution of this content is Key Takeaways Dr. Jeff Karabanow: Child welfare and youth homelessness. expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Toronto Dr. Stephen Gaetz: The cost of homelessness, Dr. Tim Aubry: The modest costs and transformative benefits of Housing First. Other times they are portrayed as young adventurers, who leave home to explore the world and seek out the bright lights of the big city. In the next video, current and former residents of Youth Without Shelter, an emergency shelter for young people in the Greater Toronto Area, speak about the reasons why they became homeless. (27:54). Would people still look away today? Young people then look to live with friends, or go to new places to seek new economic opportunities. As you watch it, we encourage you to reflect on what you have learned throughout this section on the complex and intersecting reasons some young people become homeless. She was actually having a rather pleasant conversation with this man whom she had come to know fairly well. Dr. Katrina Milaney: What is unique about the experience of homelessness for women? Prior to experiencing homelessness, a young person might have precipitating events, such as conflict with parents, living in an unsafe environment, and/or identity-based prejudices that make it safer to leave. For young people who have experienced such abuse, there is an increased likelihood of negative developmental outcomes including low self-esteem, an impaired ability to form affective and trusting relationships with adults, higher rates of depression and suicide attempts, running away or being kicked out of the home (Beitchman, Zucker, Hood, daCosta, Ackman & Cassavia, 1991; Tyler et al. In the Introduction chapter, we considered the question of why prevention matters. The Roadmap for the Prevention of Youth Homelessness Executive Summary. Podcast: What happens after patients who are experiencing homelessness are discharged from hospital? . This video is 0:39 in length and has closed captions available in English. Podcast: What is unique about the experience of homelessness for women? Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Dr. Stephen Hwang: Do people experiencing homelessness have equitable access to primary care? Podcast: Why are people who experience homelessness at a higher risk during a pandemic? The research showed many people felt that it was unconscionable to have young people on the streets and that if families could not support this population, then we need to have deeper interventions as a society. Dr. Stephen Hwang: Would improved funding for affordable housing decrease the burden on hospitals? As Dr. Kidd explained, and as we will hear repeated throughout this section, there is no single reason young people become homeless but rather it is the result of multiple factors. Do people experiencing homelessness use emergency medical services at a high rate? Dr. Tyler Frederick: Why do some young people become homeless? Young people become homeless for many reasons, including because society fails to prevent it from occurring. Dr. Stephen Hwang: Are there special end-of-life considerations for someone experiencing homelessness? (14:13). (20:06). While COVID-19 made it hard for Ciizzy to find a place to stay after she was kicked out, United Way East Ontario and Youth Services Bureau helped her find a brighter path forward. Youth homelessness does not often result from one event, but rather is the culmination of multiple stressors within complex home environments that occur over time. Dr. John Ecker: What is the prevalence of mental health issues for people who experience homelessness? Dr. Alex Abramovich: Do people who experience homelessness use emergency medical services at a high rate? While this question may be asked with good intentions, it assumes that the home was a good place to live, and the youth is at fault for leaving it. Dr. Erin Dej: What is the criminalization of homelessness? Dr. Kaitlin Schwan: How can communities implement better support programs? Dr. Stephen Gaetz: How do we know what we know about homelessness? Dr. Jacqueline Kennelly: Historical downloading of affordable housing. (20:13). Key Takeaways Dr. Alex Abramovich: Why do some young people become homeless? A review of pre-service teacher certification standards in the United States and Canada found that there are few requirements for teacher candidates to obtain training in mental health-relevant interventions, despite teachers unique positionality and ability to promote student social and emotional well-being (Brown, Phillippo, Weston, & Rodger, 2019). In this video, Dr. Jeff Karabanow explains that half of the young people experiencing homelessness have come through the child welfare system. Podcast: What housing policy existed in the past? Dr. Kelli Stajduhar: Workers, loss, and grieving, Dr. Jeannette Waegemakers Schiff: Lets change the way we think about burnout. The reasons why people experience homelessness are always complicated. Dr. John Ecker: How can communities implement better support programs? All of these factors can lead to extreme poverty, and when combined with other challenges (in the home, with the legal system), can lead to homelessness.
Language / Langue When young people are not well-served by these systems, they risk falling into homelessness. If abuse or neglect is not the cause for the report, the child welfare worker can say the youth is ineligible for protection. Dr. Nick Falvo: How can we begin to decolonize society and decrease Indigenous homelessness? In this video, Dr. Naomi Nichols argues that youth experiencing homelessness are invisibilized in public systems that are not well equipped to facilitate positive referrals between their institutions. In the next video Dr. Sean Kidd explains that youth homelessness is not a binary experience (of being homeless or not), but that it is often a process and regardless of why a young person is on the streets, we must consider them a person in need of support. Whereas adults may lose housing they own or rent due to these factors, young people often flee or are pushed out of housing controlled by adults in their lives, such as their parents. First, there may be deep family dysfunction such as addictions, mental illness, or parental lack of acceptance of ones sexual orientation that makes the home an unsafe environment. Dr. Nick Kerman: Why is mental illness so high among people experiencing homelessness? This video is 0:31 in length and has closed captions available in English. This video is 1:16 in length and has closed captions available in English. Dr. Tyler Frederick: How can young people be supported to exit homelessness permanently? There are long-term consequences of not earning a high school diploma, such as difficulty obtaining employment, that can keep young people entrenched in poverty. Dr. NickFalvo: How do we know what we know about homelessness? We have noted that there are three levels or domains that contribute to youth homelessness, often in overlapping and intersecting ways. Dr. Jeff Karabanow: Are all people who experience homelessness street-involved? permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com. Learn more about United Ways charity ratings and how your gift is managed. Dr. Katrina Milaney: How can communities implement better support programs?
In the next two videos, Dr. Jeff Karabanow and Dr. Bill OGrady reflect on child welfare as one of many interrelated pathways into youth homelessness.
The reasons young people become homeless are complex, but they are also well documented. n a sample of 974 young people who were street involved and us, substances, 76% had not completed high school, with analysis showing these were related to childhood maltreatment, such as physical abuse, emotional abuse, physical neglect, and emotional neglect, indicated that there was a cumulative effect, such that the great, the number of different forms of childhood maltreatment, the great, chance of not completing high school (Barker, It is societal failures that allow young people to, be victimized, experience trauma, and subs. This video is 3:07 in length and has closed captions available in English. Youth homelessness is nearly always related to some sort of family dysfunction, such as pertaining to physical, sexual, and/or emotional abuse. She notes that youth leaving child welfare is a major category of young people experiencing homelessness, and that recent advocacy by former foster care children and their supporters has helped extend the period in which they receive financial supports. Dr. JeannetteWaegemakersSchiff: Is Housing First a solution to homelessness? (12:56). 
Although middle class and more affluent youth can sometimes experience homelessness, the majority of youth who become homeless were already impoverished and had precarious family backgrounds. 
We can also see how conflict over a young persons gender or sexual identity may intersect with structural conditions, such as racism and discrimination, and may result from inadequate social supports within society. Interpersonal causes are related to a young persons own experiences, such as pertaining to a mental health crisis in their family or experiences of abuse or violence in their home or community. Poverty not delinquency is the leading cause of youth homelessness around the world, according to a groundbreaking international study led by a University of Toronto researcher. (24:22), Dr. Jonathan Greene: The different ways of managing homelessness. Dr. Nichols and her team (2017) led an analysis of the child welfare data from the first national survey of youth homelessness in Canada and found that 58% were involved with the child welfare system at some point in their life. Dr. Abe Oudshoorn: Would improved funding for affordable housing decrease the burden on hospitals? First, we present an infographic, created by the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness and A Way Home Canada, that highlights the six key aspects and how they can be realized. Key Takeaways Dr. Naomi Thulien: Why do some young people become homeless?
She identifies schools and child welfare as a particular gap. You can read the full Canadian Definition of Youth Homelessness here: Canadian Definition of Youth Homelessness. Dr. Sean Kidd: Why is mental illness so high among people who experience homelessness? Dr. Sean Kidd: Why do some young people become homeless? Before you continue through the material, we invite you now to take a moment and record your own thoughts on why some young people become homeless. (23:09), [1] Creating deeply affordable housing as a human right, [2] Implementing individualized choice-based supports to meet peoples unique needs, [3] Holding the government accountable for social policy, past, present, and future, [4] Preventing homelessness from occurring through systemic change, Podcast: Part 1 Can we end homelessness, how? The impact of COVID-19, such as job loss and financial instability, has increased family stress levels and mental health issues, which impacts young people within the family. We believe that everyone deserves to find a place to call home. Dr. Jeff Karabanow: What is the criminalization of homelessness? Dr. Kaitlin Schwan: The stress of youth homelessness, Dr. Alex Abramovich: LGBTQ2S youth, stigma, and mental health supports, Dr. Naomi Thulien: Loneliness, social isolation, and relationship building. Dr. Rebecca Schiff: Why are people who experience homelessness at higher risk during a pandemic? Not only are youth who experience homelessness 193 times more likely to be involved (Nichols et al., 2017) but those who are Indigenous are even more disproportionately represented. Clearly were not really being responsive to the needs of youth and families, if so many children and young people have to turn to the streets to look for something better., Anyone can read Conversations, but to contribute, you should be registered Torstar account holder. Dr. Bernie Pauly: Are there special end-of-life considerations for someone experiencing homelessness? In this video, Dr. David Firang argues that young people do not have to become homeless but in our society some people will experience poverty and homelessness based on life circumstances. (40:45). Dr. Gaetz explains that young people become homeless because society fails to stop it from happening. In the next two videos, Dr. Jacqueline Kennelly and Dr. Alex Abramovich speak about how the intersection of interpersonal and other factors contribute to LGBTQ2S+ youth homelessness. What they failed to see was the, interpersonal struggles within his home and community, the, within society that resulted in limited opportunities, and the systemic failures that did not, that youth homelessness is not a binary experience. Key Takeaways Dr. Naomi Nichols: Why do some young people become homeless? 2. Multivariate analysis from this study indicated that there was a cumulative effect, such that the greater the number of different forms of childhood maltreatment, the greater the chance of not completing high school (Barker et al., 2017). What is the role of case management in Social Work? In this video, Dr. Jeff Karabanow identifies three core interrelated dynamics that contribute to youth homelessness. What specialized primary care would people who experience homelessness benefit from? 3. Dr. Tim Aubry: Do people experiencing homelessness have equitable access to primary care? She argues that if we can figure out how to intervene at the right time, we can help prevent youth homelessness from occurring. Preferred Language, GenNext East Ontario gennext@unitedwayeo.ca, 363 Coventry RoadOttawa, ON K1K 2C5Telephone: 613.228.6700Fax: 613.228.6730, 2022 United Way East Ontario. 
causes of youth homelessness in canada
