The Health Circumstances of Homeless Women in the United States

Women have become the fastest growing segment of the homeless population in the United States, yet very little is known about their sociodemographic profile, health status, use of health services, or the relation between their homeless condition to these social and health factors. This study draws on descriptive statistics and the multivariate results from nine major papers produced using data from the UCLA Homeless Women's Health Study to provide one of the first comprehensive profiles of the social, economic and health circumstances of homeless women in the United States. Homeless women are a highly vulnerable subgroup of the homeless population. The findings from the analysis of this large representative sample of homeless women indicates that the severity of the homeless condition itself is strongly associated with poor health and inadequate use of health services among these women. Findings also indicate that white women are especially vulnerable to adverse health and have limited access to various forms of health care. With the feminization of homelessness, it has become increasingly more important to target effective service linkages among providers of women's health services, substance abuse and mental health treatment and primary care to address the special needs of homeless women.