· Characteristics
· Prevalence
· Special Issues
· Top Unmet Needs
According to the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH, 2006), approximately 40% of homeless men are veterans, although veterans comprise only 34% of the general adult male population.
“The U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) says homeless veterans are mostly males (2 % are females). The vast majority are single, most come from poor, disadvantaged communities, 45% suffer from mental illness, and half have substance abuse problems. America’s homeless veterans have served in World War II, Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, or the military’s anti-drug cultivation efforts in South America. Forty-seven percent of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam Era. More than 67% served our country for at least three years and 33% were stationed in a war zone”. (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, 2004).
According to Vietnam Veterans of San Diego (they serve all veterans) hundreds, perhaps a thousand, of San Diego veterans have been injured or traumatized in the current Iraq War, increasing the number of new veterans who are traumatized, both physically and mentally, by war. It is too early to know the exact number of Iraqi veterans who are homeless, but San Diego homeless providers have already started to house and treat these new homeless veterans.
Homeless veterans appear to be better educated than the general homeless population, as statistics show 85 percent have completed high school/GED, while only 55 percent of non-veterans have accomplished the same (National Coalition for the Homeless, 2006). According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, a large number of veterans are considered at-risk homeless due to poverty, lack of support from family and friends, and tenuous housing conditions.
In the San Diego region, between 1,137 and 1,251 homeless persons identified themselves as veterans.. The strong military presence in San Diego County may account for these numbers. Many former enlisted personnel have either spent a portion of their service in the San Diego area or have been separated from service in San Diego and many remain in the area in search of jobs. Vietnam Veterans of San Diego is seeing an increasing percentage of homeless veteran women, based on the increased number of women veterans in general.
Veterans have mental health problems, such as Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, as well as physical disabilities (often service related), which may prevent them from working . These problems are in addition to an already difficult re-entry into mainstream society. Additionally, some are dually diagnosed with both substance abuse and psychiatric disorders.
Studies in the 1980’s and early 1990’s reported that homeless veterans were more likely to have been in jail, had substance abuse issues or been hospitalized for psychiatric disorders than homeless non-veterans. However, more recently, it is believed that veterans who become homeless do so through the same factors as non-veteran homeless; poverty, joblessness, mental illness and substance abuse (Special Populations of Homeless Americans, 1999).
· Alcohol & Drug Abuse Treatment
· Employment Assistance
· Outreach
· Permanent Housing
· Transitional Housing
· Dental Care
· Eye Care
Homeless veterans do not always fare well in programs designed for the general homeless population. Dropout and recidivism rates can be high and therefore programs that specifically tailor their services to veterans are needed.
References
This profile is based in part on information provided to the Regional Task Force on the Homeless by David Siegler, Community Development Director, Vietnam Veterans of San Diego (VVSD).
Homeless Veterans: NCH Fact Sheet #14. National Coalition for the Homeless. June 2006.
(http://www.nationalhomeless.org/publications/facts/veterans.pdf)
National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. Website: Background and Statistics (2004)
(http://www.nchv.org/background.cfm).
Special Populations of Homeless Americans. (August 1999) The 1998 National Symposium on Homelessness Research. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ( http://aspe.os.dhhs.gov/progsys/homeless/symposium/2-Spclpop.htm )