3.8 Vignette: Addressing Homelessness Among Canadian Veterans
The range of experiences and differing needs among specific homeless subgroups is not well understood. This is especially true for Canadian veterans – a subpopulation gaining increasing recognition among homeless communities across Canada. The Canadian Model for Housing and Support for Veterans Experiencing Homelessness commenced in 2012 as a project to generate knowledge and to test housing-with-support strategies for addressing homelessness among Canadian veterans in four Canadian cities (Calgary, London, Toronto and Victoria). Key principles that were identified through a previous exploratory study involving homeless veterans in Canada were examined and validated (Ray & Forchuk, 2011). This case study report will outline the project in detail, highlight research findings and, moreover, it will provide suggestions to strengthen our capacity to respond to the issue of veteran homelessness across Canada.