Re: Healthcare for people experiencing homelessness
The editorial “Healthcare for people experiencing homelessness” reports the UK’s rise in homelessness which is a public health disaster. The statistics in the article show that the homeless population tripled from 2011 to 2018. Homeless people experience autism, lack of attention, mental disorder, high rate of bloodborne virus infection and tuberculosis. In UK a pathway model for homeless people emphasised primary care and where possible the recruitment of trained former homeless people.
The census of India uses the term “houseless population", defined as people who do not live in census house i.e. a house with a roof but in open spaces like pavements, railway stations, in pipes, etc. Accordng to the 2011 census, there were 449761 households or families in India which constitute around 0.15% of total country’s population which is homeless. Homeless ratio of other countries is Indonesia 1.36%, China 0.18%, Ireland 0.21%, Nigeria 16.58%.
Homeless women, particularly those who are single, are more vulnerable to physical violence and sexual abuse. Women with children often have unsafe and insecure jobs such as prostitution and drug intervention in exchange for food and shelter. Children often get involved in alcohol and drug abuse dure to stress and depression. Street children have bad performance and behavior issues in school and eventually it results in dropping out, low literacy and a vicious cycle of poverty and homelessness.
Homelessness in India is basically a result of families migrating from rural to urban cities due to various reasons like loss of land, lack of resources, etc. Another cause can be worker wages which is low and people cannot afford a house in the city. Numerous urban welfare programs have existed in India for years. For example,
Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rojgar yojana - the scheme strives to provide gainful employment to the urban unemployed and underemployed poor people through encouraging the setting up of self-employment ventures by people living below the poverty line.
Jawahar Lal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission - this programe was meant to improve the quality of life and infrastructure in cities. It aims at creating economically productive, efficient, equitable, and responsive cities.
Rajiv Awas Yojana - the objective of this yojana is to make cities slum free, adopting a ‘whole slum approach’. This requires the existing slums in a city to be remodeled so that residents are provided with acceptable level of housing and access to basic services. Homeless people often fail to gain access to these services because they lack identification required by these policies.
One new initiative is Pradhan Mantri Awas yojana is an initiative of India in which affordable housing will be provided to the urban poor with the a target of building 20 million affordable houses by 31 March 2022.
The housing and urban development corporation had a policy for homeless people known as night shelters for urban shelter less. Most of the night shelters in the city are overcrowded with the increasing number of homeless people. According to the India homeless resource network report, these shelters are located close to the areas where the poorest people congregate - railway stations, bus depots, markets, etc. All state and local governments are legally bound to build dignified shelters in sufficient numbers and with appropriate facilities.
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Re: Healthcare for people experiencing homelessness
The editorial “Healthcare for people experiencing homelessness” reports the UK’s rise in homelessness which is a public health disaster. The statistics in the article show that the homeless population tripled from 2011 to 2018. Homeless people experience autism, lack of attention, mental disorder, high rate of bloodborne virus infection and tuberculosis. In UK a pathway model for homeless people emphasised primary care and where possible the recruitment of trained former homeless people.
The census of India uses the term “houseless population", defined as people who do not live in census house i.e. a house with a roof but in open spaces like pavements, railway stations, in pipes, etc. Accordng to the 2011 census, there were 449761 households or families in India which constitute around 0.15% of total country’s population which is homeless. Homeless ratio of other countries is Indonesia 1.36%, China 0.18%, Ireland 0.21%, Nigeria 16.58%.
Homeless women, particularly those who are single, are more vulnerable to physical violence and sexual abuse. Women with children often have unsafe and insecure jobs such as prostitution and drug intervention in exchange for food and shelter. Children often get involved in alcohol and drug abuse dure to stress and depression. Street children have bad performance and behavior issues in school and eventually it results in dropping out, low literacy and a vicious cycle of poverty and homelessness.
Homelessness in India is basically a result of families migrating from rural to urban cities due to various reasons like loss of land, lack of resources, etc. Another cause can be worker wages which is low and people cannot afford a house in the city. Numerous urban welfare programs have existed in India for years. For example,
Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rojgar yojana - the scheme strives to provide gainful employment to the urban unemployed and underemployed poor people through encouraging the setting up of self-employment ventures by people living below the poverty line.
Jawahar Lal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission - this programe was meant to improve the quality of life and infrastructure in cities. It aims at creating economically productive, efficient, equitable, and responsive cities.
Rajiv Awas Yojana - the objective of this yojana is to make cities slum free, adopting a ‘whole slum approach’. This requires the existing slums in a city to be remodeled so that residents are provided with acceptable level of housing and access to basic services. Homeless people often fail to gain access to these services because they lack identification required by these policies.
One new initiative is Pradhan Mantri Awas yojana is an initiative of India in which affordable housing will be provided to the urban poor with the a target of building 20 million affordable houses by 31 March 2022.
The housing and urban development corporation had a policy for homeless people known as night shelters for urban shelter less. Most of the night shelters in the city are overcrowded with the increasing number of homeless people. According to the India homeless resource network report, these shelters are located close to the areas where the poorest people congregate - railway stations, bus depots, markets, etc. All state and local governments are legally bound to build dignified shelters in sufficient numbers and with appropriate facilities.
Competing interests: No competing interests