| A new report recently released by HRSA's Bureau of Primary
Health Care shows how providers can respond to the special health
care and social service needs of homeless young people without
parents or guardians.
Called Understanding the Health Care Needs of Homeless
Youth, the document shows how to design a comprehensive
system of care that meets the unique needs of homeless teens
and young adults. Best practice models that can be replicated
are included.
The report also identifies how homeless teens and young adults:
- face a greater number of physical and mental health problems
than their housed counterparts and are more likely to engage
in high-risk behaviors.
- often have troubled academic histories, including repeated
grades.
- need stable housing, but many communities have a shortage
of shelter space available for them.
The document can be downloaded and printed at http://bphc.hrsa.gov
by clicking on Policy Information Notices and Program Assistance
Letters. The report is PAL #2001-10. For more information,
contact BPHC's Health Care for the Homeless Branch at 301-594-4430.
BPHC provides more than $1 billion
in annual funding to programs that improve access to primary
health care for America’s vulnerable and medically underserved
individuals and families. HRSA is the lead agency in the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services for improving access
to health care for all Americans.
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