Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Jul;59(5):826-833.
doi: 10.1007/s10597-022-01063-0. Epub 2022 Dec 1.

Housing Status as a Predictor for Outpatient Care Following an Emergency or Urgent Care Encounter with a Behavioral Health Diagnosis: A Multivariable Analysis

Genna Bonfiglio  1 , Ryan Loh  2 , Scott A Simpson  2 , Lindsey E Fish  3
Affiliations

Housing Status as a Predictor for Outpatient Care Following an Emergency or Urgent Care Encounter with a Behavioral Health Diagnosis: A Multivariable Analysis

Genna Bonfiglio et al. Community Ment Health J. 2023 Jul.

Abstract

Individuals without stable housing experience high rates of mental illness and seek behavioral health care in emergency care settings. Little is known about the effect of homelessness on outpatient follow-up after utilizing emergency or urgent care for behavioral health care. Patient encounters with behavioral health diagnoses among 7 emergency department (ED) or urgent care (UC) locations over 4 years were used to determine the correlation between housing status and outpatient follow-up within 90 days. Of 1,160,386 visits by 269,615 unique patients, 55,738 (23%) encounters included a behavioral health diagnosis. Patients with stable housing were twice as likely to follow up with a primary care provider (PCP) and with an outpatient behavioral health provider than patients without housing (aOR 2.60; aOR 2.00, p < 0.0001). Homelessness is associated with difficulty in accessing follow-up behavioral health care. UCs and EDs may use specific interventions to improve outpatient follow-up.

Keywords: Homelessness; Outpatient Care; Psychiatric Emergency Care; Social Determinants of Health.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Ayano, G., Tsegay, L., Abraha, M., & Yohannes, K. (2019). Suicidal ideation and attempt among homeless people: a systematic review and Meta-analysis. Psychiatric Quarterly, 90(4), 829–842. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-019-09667-8 . - DOI - PubMed
    1. Baggett, T. P., O’Connell, J. J., Singer, D. E., & Rigotti, N. A. (2010). The unmet health care needs of homeless adults: a national study. American Journal of Public Health, 100(7), 1326–1333. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2009.180109 . - DOI - PubMed - PMC
    1. Baxter, A. J., Tweed, E. J., Katikireddi, S. V., & Thomson, H. (2019). Effects of Housing First approaches on health and well-being of adults who are homeless or at risk of homelessness: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 73(5), 379–387. https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2018-210981 . - DOI - PubMed
    1. Behavioral Health Services for People Who Are Homeless. https://store.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/SAMHSA_Digital_Download/PEP...
    1. Bhui, K., Shanahan, L., & Harding, G. (2006). Homelessness and Mental Illness: A literature review and a qualitative study of perceptions of the adequacy of Care. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 52(2), 152–165. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764006062096 . - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources