Abstract
There are large numbers of homeless people around the world. Interventions to address homelessness seem to be effective, though better quality evidence is required. What are the main findings of this review? Included interventions perform better than the usual services at reducing homelessness or improving housing stability in all comparisons. These interventions are: • High intensity case management • Housing First • Critical time intervention • Abstinence-contingent housing • Non-abstinence-contingent housing with high intensity case management • Housing vouchers • Residential treatment These interventions seem to have similar beneficial effects, so it is unclear which of these is best with respect to reducing homelessness and increasing housing stability.
Highlights
In addition to the general need for better conducted and reported studies, there are specific gaps in the research with respect to: 1) disadvantaged youth; 2) abstinence-contingent housing with case management or day treatment; 3) non-abstinence contingent housing comparing group vs independent living; 4) Housing First compared to interventions other than usual services, and; 5) studies outside of the USA
The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 25) states that everyone has a right to housing
We found that a range of housing programs and case management interventions appear to reduce homelessness and improve housing stability, compared to usual services
Summary
Appraise and summarize the evidence on the effectiveness of housing programs and case management to improve housing stability and reduce homelessness among people who are homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless. We conducted a systematic review in accordance with the Norwegian Knowledge Centre’s handbook. We systematically searched for literature in relevant databases and conducted a grey literature search which was last updated in January 2016. Randomized controlled trials that included individuals who were already, or at-risk of becoming, homeless were included if they examined the effectiveness of relevant interventions on homelessness or housing stability. Two reviewers screened 2,918 abstracts and titles for inclusion. They read potentially relevant references in full, and included relevant studies in the review
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