Homelessness in wealthy nations: causes, experiences, and nursing implications

Homelessness has remained one of the min problems for the countries who are wealthy and rich in resources. Some of these countries include UK and Canada. It is still one of the strangest facts that there are millions of homeless people still living on the streets of these wealthy countries in shattered homes or streets. Various studies have been conducted on the issues faced by these homeless people as well as their experiences. The information of these experiences can help the student nurses by reshaping lost social identities of these homeless people.

Homelessness in the United States has remained a concern for many sociologists. The number of homeless people started to accelerate in the 1980s when it was estimated that more than 500,000 people were homeless. In accordance to the reports published by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, in 2009, there were more than 700,000 people homeless or living in shattered homes. In accordance to the same report, more than 4 million people in the U.S. experience homelessness each year. This paper will focus on the same topic; homelessness and the issues that are faced by the homeless people. The paper will summarize three main studies on homelessness. The main study, the required text is based on the topic "Homelessness" in the book Sociology 7th Canadian Edition by John J. Macionis and Linda. M. Gerber (2011). The two other studies that will be used for comparison and contrast with the required text include 'Gender Differences in the Residential Origins of the Homeless: Identification of Areas with High Risk of Homelessness' by Deden Rukmana, and 'Stories from the streets: people's experiences of homelessness' written by S. Williams and T. Stickley. The information provided in the texts can be of great help for a student nurse as the information can help in understanding some of the main psychological and social issues that are faced by the homeless people. As soon as these issues can be learned, there is a great deal of changes that can be implemented by the nurses in their services of healthcare provision to the poor and homeless.

Summary of articles

Sociology (7th Edn, Canada)

"Homelessness" in the book Sociology 7th Canadian Edition by John J. Macionis and Linda. M. Gerber (2011) has mainly focused on the issue of homelessness in Canada. The beginning of the text is rather strong. It states that up until now, Canadian government has failed to provide adequate and affordable housing to the poor and needy ones in Canada.

The text has given important information, as there is a need to look into the issue of homelessness in the country that has wealthy of resources. The rising trend of homelessness in wealthy and resourceful countries like Canada is a scar on the sociological life of the country. It indicates that the authorities and the governments have remained ignorant of the issue. Definitions and categories of the homeless people have been given in the text. First category includes those who are in jails, living on the streets or in the temporary shelters. Second category of the homeless people includes those who have been laid off based on plant closings, have been thrown out of apartments based on rising rents, or because of gentrification in which housing-based rooms are converted into single-family homes. The authors have than highlighted main health issues that are faced by the homeless people. These include being mentally ill as well as being drug or alcohol addicts. Important part of the text is the reason given that has increasingly contributed to the issues of homelessness (Macionis and Gerber, 2011, p. 265).

The authors have highlighted that the declining efficiency of the Canadian government and the Canadian economy when coupled together is the main cause of rising homelessness in the country. The authors have mentioned in the text that the societal as well as the personal dimensions of the problem must be taken into account. An important section in the chapter, 'sociology and the media' has highlighted how erroneous census is being carried out by the volunteers that adds into the wrong reporting of the actual number of homeless people in the country. Social inequality has been highlighted as an important factor in which it has been highlighted that the blacks and Aboriginals are never seen as a part of higher life styles (Macionis and Gerber, 2011, p. 269).

Gender Differences in the Residential Origins of the Homeless: Identification of Areas with High Risk of Homelessness

Written by Deden Rukmana, the study has highlighted some of the main gender-based issues as faced by the homeless people in Miami Dade County, in Florida. The strongest point about the study is that previous studies that have focused on the issue of homeless have been mentioned. The author has highlighted that more focus has been given to homeless people and their issues since the last 20 years. The weaknesses and the gaps in the previous studies have been highlighted in the study as the author has mentioned lesser focus being given to the residential origins of the homeless people. There are two main objectives of the study as highlighted by the author. The study has first investigated the origins of the homeless people. Secondly, the study has investigated the socioeconomic, housing and demographic factors associated with the origins of the homeless people. As a hypothesis, the author has stated that there are various economic and demographic factors that contribute to the residential origins of the homeless people (Rukmana, 2010, p. 96).

Gender perspective is the main area of the study. In this case, the author has mentioned that the women as compared to men are less likely to live on the streets. Homeless women are usually found living in shattered homes. Homeless men are more exposed to social as well as environmental risks. Domestic violence has been cited as one of the main reasons for homeless women. Men on the other hand cite loss of their jobs as the main reason for being homeless (Rukmana, 2010, p. 98).

Census tracts, hotspot analysis and statistical analysis have been used to achieve the objectives in the study. Findings in the study state that homeless women are concentrated both ion northern as well as southern areas while men are found more in the northern parts of the country having highest poverty. Secondly, one of the most important factors that have contributed more to the homelessness is the housing factors and housing crowding (Rukmana, 2010, p. 110).

Sociology vs. Stories from the streets: people's experiences of homelessness

There are some minor facts that are found common between required text from Macionis and Gerber (2011) and S. Williams and T. Stickley (2011). Some of the main issues that have been taken into account in the journal article include the psychological, demographic and health-based issues that are usually faced by the homeless people in the UK. The difference between the two studies is based on the countries in which focus has been given by the two authors. The facts and figures and the issues that are faced by the homeless in Canada might be somewhat different as compared to the issues faced by those on the streets of the UK. However, reading the two studies, there is no doubt about the fact that health-based issues and social issues of the homeless people are almost the same. Williams and T. Stickley (2011) has reported that based on the stress of being on the streets living in a homeless condition, the homeless people lose their actual sense of identity. With the loss of the sense of identity, there is a great acceleration in various kinds of mental healthcare issues and social connections thereby the social life. With this, the author has mentioned some of the main roles that can be played by the mental healthcare nurses. When information is gained by the mental healthcare nurses in regards to the experiences of the homeless people, the information can be used in order to help the homeless people by reshaping their identities, which can help them in having better social connections. Williams and T. Stickley (2011) have reported that only providing an adequate shelter for the homeless people is not the solution, but the nurses can help in reshaping their identities. Macionis and Gerber (2011) have given brief introduction of health-based issues of the homeless people as they have reported that the homeless people in Canada are suffering from stress, illicit drug and alcohol abuse and mental health-based issues.

Relevance to Personal and Professional Life as Student Nurse

Personal Relevance

Other than these studies, many studies have highlighted the main issues faced by the homeless people on the streets. Great information and knowledge can be gained when a student nurse takes the experiences of the homeless people into account. Various social issues strike the homeless people that can be addressed by the student nurse. There are various different kinds of mental health issues faced by the homeless people that can be addressed in detail by the student nurse when more focus is given to the issues faced by the homeless people. How they lose their social identities is one of the main information that needs to be focused upon by the student nurse and there is much that can be done by the student nurse in helping the homeless in regaining their social identities.

Professional Relevance

The knowledge gained with the help of experiences of the homeless people can help the student nurse in their professional lives. The homeless people not only need adequate housing but there is a need that the student nurses in such a way that their crushed and lost self-identities can be restored design better strategies. With the help of sessions that can be given by the student nurses to the broken and shattered homeless people, great confidence can be given to the homeless people along with making sure that restoration of lost identities can take place.

Conclusion

Homelessness has been considered in the paper. Facts from the required text by Macionis and Gerber (2011) have been compared with the facts given by Williams and T. Stickley (2011) and Deden Rukmana (2010). Macionis and Gerber (2011) have covered the brief issues and reasons of homelessness in Canada, county in Florida in relation to gender perspectives has been covered by Deden Rukmana (2010) and UK has been considered in relation to the experiences of the homeless people. With the help of these studies and readings, a student nurse can provide a great helping and healing hand as a nurse can help restore mental health of the homeless people along with restoration of social and persona identities.