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When Crises Converge: Hospital Visits Before and After Shelter Use Among Homeless New Yorkers
Health Affairs (2019)
  • Dan Treglia, University of Pennsylvania
  • Eileen L Johns, City of New York
  • Maryanne Schretzman, City of New York
  • Jacob Berman, City of New York
  • Dennis P Culhane, University of Pennslyvania
  • David C Lee, New York University
  • Kelly M. Doran, New York University
Abstract
People who are homeless use more hospital-based care than average, yet little is known about how hospital and shelter use are interrelated. We examined the timing of emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations relative to entry into and exit from New York City homeless shelters, using an analysis of linked health care and shelter administrative databases. In the year before shelter entry and the year following shelter exit, 39.3 percent and 43.3 percent, respectively, of firsttime adult shelter users had an ED visit or hospitalization. Hospital visits—particularly ED visits—began to increase several months before shelter entry and declined over several months after shelter exit, with spikes in ED visits and hospitalizations in the days immediately before shelter entry and following shelter exit. We recommend cross-system collaborations to better understand and address the co-occurring health and housing needs of vulnerable populations.
Keywords
  • homelessness,
  • emergency department
Publication Date
September, 2019
Citation Information
Dan Treglia, Eileen L Johns, Maryanne Schretzman, Jacob Berman, et al.. "When Crises Converge: Hospital Visits Before and After Shelter Use Among Homeless New Yorkers" Health Affairs Vol. 38 Iss. 9 (2019) p. 1458 - 1467
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/dennis_culhane/232/