Abstract
Community integration—an individual’s embeddedness in his/her community—impacts mental and physical health. This study aimed to understand factors affecting community integration among Veterans in the Department of Housing and Urban Development-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program. Semi-structured interviews and focus groups were conducted with HUD-VASH staff (n = 14) and persons residing in project-based (n = 9) and tenant-based (n = 9) housing at VA Greater Los Angeles. Participants identified neighborhood safety concerns as a limitation to community integration. Participants were reluctant to connect with HUD-VASH peers living nearby because they wanted to focus on their own recovery (e.g., from substance use); and many were dissatisfied with the location of their apartments. Staff valued community integration but saw it as secondary to housing retention. Increased access to safe neighborhoods (e.g., through relationship building with landlords) and the addition of staff dedicated to improving community integration (e.g., peer-support specialists) would enhance community integration in the HUD-VASH program.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 303-312 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Community Mental Health Journal |
| Volume | 56 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Feb 2020 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2019, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
Funding
Financial support was provided by Lynne Sagalyn and Gary Hack Department of Urban Studies and Planning Fund at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Greater Los Angeles Veteran Affairs Research Enhancement Award Program (REAP). Dr. Chinchilla was supported by the VA Office of Academic Affiliations through the Health Service Research and Development Post-Doctoral Fellowship. The contents do not represent the views of the US Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States Government. Financial support was provided by Lynne Sagalyn and Gary Hack Department of Urban Studies and Planning Fund at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Greater Los Angeles Veteran Affairs Research Enhancement Award Program (REAP). Dr. Chinchilla was supported by the VA Office of Academic Affiliations through the Health Service Research and Development Post-Doctoral Fellowship. The contents do not represent the views of the US Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States Government.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| Gary Hack Department of Urban Studies and Planning Fund at Massachusetts Institute of Technology | |
| Lynne Sagalyn and Gary Hack Department of Urban Studies and Planning Fund | |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | |
| Health Services Research and Development | |
| Office of Academic Affiliations, Department of Veterans Affairs |
Keywords
- Community integration
- HUD-VASH
- Homelessness
- Permanent supportive housing
- Veterans
