Serving the homeless mentally ill: Mental health linkage

✍ Scribed by Carol T. Mowbray; Evan Cohen; Shirley Harris; Stuart Trosch; Steve Johnson; Bruce Duncan

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1992
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 934 KB
• Volume: 20
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0090-4392
• DOI: 10.1002/1520-6629(199207)20:3<215::aid-jcop2290200305>3.0.co;2-d

✦ Synopsis

A substantial amount of research on homeless mentally ill individuals within the last 5 years has clarified their numbers, characteristics, and service needs. Research is lacking, however, on effective service models. A Mental Health Linkage model is presented, derived from practice principles in the literature, including outreach, community integration of mental health services, and meeting clients on their terms. The model is described and data on client characteristics and service operations are presented from three demonstration sites. Significant differences in client characteristics were found, indicating the heterogeneity of this population across different community contexts. When evaluated against practice principles and. the program's intent, research results suggest the model's success in serving the target group by providing them with linkage and housing. Barriers identified through the demonstration projects' experiences are substantial, however, and warn of the challenges that services to homeless mentally ill individuals face within mental health agencies and within their communities.