Improving Services to Individuals Experiencing Houselessness through Interdisciplinary Training

Background and Purpose:

A total of 6,223 people experienced houselessness in the state of Hawai‘i in 2023 according to the annual point-in-time count, causing Hawai‘i to have one of the highest per capita homelessness rates in the Nation. Students in the helping professions in the state are thus likely to encounter individuals experiencing houselessness in their work. To help students to prepare to successfully work with this population, the authors developed a training directed towards students in the pharmacy, social work, psychology, and medical departments. Students were trained on research-based factors that lead to houselessness versus myths, they were led through a case study to illustrate the challenges an individual with health needs who was experiencing houselessness may encounter, and they were given practical tips in working with this population. Students who participated in the training took a pre and post-test. The objective of the pre and post-test was to evaluate the effectiveness of the training.

Methods:

Students from the 4 departments participated in a training on improving work with individuals experiencing houselessness. Prior to the training the participants took a pre-test, and when they completed the training, they took a post-test. Participants responded to 4 questions: (1) I feel comfortable working with people who are homeless; (2) I am competent in using strategies that help people who are homeless live healthy lives; (3) I understand factors that make it hard for people who are homeless to maintain their health and hygiene; and (4) I am aware of my biases about people who are homeless and actively work to address them. The evaluation was conducted via Qualtrics, students were given a QR code to the survey pre- and post-training. To evaluate the results, mean comparison was utilized.

Results:

For the pre-test, 157 students participated, and 151 students participated in the post-test. When examining each question, it was found that participants mean scores increased in each item from pre to post-test. The highest increase was in the question: I am competent in using strategies that help people who are homeless live healthy lives. Participants also answered 2 post-test questions asking how comfortable they felt applying the concepts in the training to their work and how applicable the training was to their work. Out of a 5-point scale, the mean score for both of these items was 4.36.

Conclusions:

As Cobb (2020) states, in the helping professions we should work with individuals experiencing houselessness as unique individuals rather than stereotypes. Research finds that houseless individuals may have mental health needs, substance use needs, and physical health ailments. In states such as Hawai‘i, where one in the helping profession is likely to work with an individual experiencing houselessness, it is essential to provide training on biases, evidence based practice, and practical applications. This training aimed to achieve all of those goals. Based on the pre and post-tests, students found this training successful and were able to learn and increase their skills. The training continues to be offered via an asynchronous on-line model.