Promoting Citizenship in Housing First Programs

Housing First (HF) is an approach that assists people with serious mental illness who are chronically homeless to become housed. Research has shown HF assists people in leaving homelessness and achieving stable housing. However, HF participants do not experience increased participation in the community or improved social networks. In response to these results, the present project involves creating a “social prescribing” intervention within HF programs. Social prescribing involves connecting people with community resources to address social connection and loneliness, such as outdoor and nature activities, arts-based projects, museums, and gardening clubs. The proposed project will integrate social prescribing into a HF program with the goal of assisting participants in becoming more integrated in the community. The project will be completed in collaboration with the Ottawa Branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA Ottawa). Throughout CMHA’s experience with HF, they have noted the difficulty in meeting their HF clients’ social isolation and loneliness needs. Therefore, the project will address a problem and support the needs of the organization. By creating, implementing, and evaluating this socially innovative intervention, the project will strengthen the effectiveness of HF initiatives and assist those with mental health concerns in becoming more integrated as citizens.

Faculty Supervisor:

Tim Aubry

Student:

Partner:

Canadian Mental Health Association (Ottawa)

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

Social Innovation; Health and Related Sciences & Technology; Public Service, Policy, and Governance

University:

University of Ottawa

Program: