Psychiatric Morbidity of Homeless Persons: a Critical Review of Anglo-Saxon Literature

This literature review reveals disparity of epidemiological methods used in the US, Great Britain, Australia, and Canada in assessing the type and extent of mental illness among homeless adults. The lack of consensual definition of homelessness, the choice of different settings in which the research is organized (street, health centers, shelters), and the use of diverse instruments of psychiatric evaluation (diagnosis by clinician, by scale, or by structured diagnostic interview) lead to a great disparity of results.

Publication Date: 
1997
Pages: 
420-430
Volume: 
23
Issue: 
6
Journal Name: 
L'Encéphale