Spike in homelessness among aged prompts research for solutions, support

By Shradhha Sharma

SFU researchers are investigating the factors behind an alarming national spike in homelessness, especially among people over the age of 55.

Their five-year project, “Aging in the Right Place (AIRP): Building Capacity for Promising Practices that Support Older People Experiencing Homelessness in Montreal, Calgary, and Vancouver,” will draw on data from older persons with experiences of homelessness (OPEH) living in these cities.

SFU professor Sarah Canham leads the project with gerontology co-investigators Atiya Mahmood (city lead) and Habib Chaudhury and health sciences professor Julian Somers. 

Homelessness among older adults

“Seniors facing housing insecurity and homelessness are often newly homeless and have very different housing, health and support needs, compared with younger people who are homeless,” says Mahmood. “Research has shown that OPEH often feel ‘stuck in place’ or ‘oscillating in and out of place,’ so we want to explore how to support aging in the right place.”

Through their community-based participatory research, Canham and Mahmood will identify key issues triggering the increase. Their feedback will help to devise policies for extending more effective support to OPEH in Vancouver, and better shelter and housing options to meet seniors’ complex health and social needs.

Data for the research will be collated with the help of 40 partner organizations, community collaborators, OPEH advisors and postdoctoral fellows and students in the three cities.

The research is funded by a grant from the Collaborative Housing Research Network (CHRN), a joint initiative of the Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation (CMHC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

“This is a really unique opportunity to be involved with CMHC,” says Canham. “It is part of their national housing strategy, which has significant goals to provide housing to those in greatest need."