What Are the Social Determinants of Health?

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RAND Corporation: America spends more on health care than any other nation in the world. Yet from birth to old age, Americans live shorter, sicker lives than people in most other wealthy countries.

A two-year research project at RAND adds some weight to a theory that might explain why. It found better health outcomes in countries that spend more on social safety-net programs like child care subsidies or old-age benefits—even when they spend less on hospital stays and medical tests.

Health care alone, in other words, can only go so far to promote health. Evidence has been accumulating for years that where and how people live plays at least as important a role in how well, and how long.

New two-year project looks at needs of L.A.’s chronically homeless

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USC News: Project will explore ways to reduce the gap between the needs of L.A.’s chronically homeless and existing housing and support service options

Housing and Mental Health

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May was Mental Health Awareness Month. The Trust’s approach to permanent supportive housing is to provide the stability, support, and community necessary for its residents to address an array of mental health issues. To highlight the connection between supportive housing and mental health, we interviewed Stacey Hartnett, a Resident Services Coordinator, and Kara Klein, a psychotherapist with John Wesley Community Health (JWCH). Stacey and Kara work together closely at the Trust’s Abbey Apartments to provide residents a safe living space that has a network of support. Watch to learn more about how Trust’s partnership with JWCH Institute helps residents achieve wellness.
Learn more about JWCH Institute at jwchinstitute.org.

A bold bet in LA: Using health care funds to find housing for the homeless

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STAT News: The job sounds impossible: solve the health care crisis in the massive and desperately sick homeless population of Skid Row, which sprawls across dozens of blocks just south of downtown.

What to do when you encounter someone in a mental health crisis

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Skid Row Housing Trust’s Director of Resident Programs Joey Aguilar was interviewed by KPCC’s Take Two yesterday, sharing tips and resources for when you encounter someone in the midst of a mental health crisis. If you are concerned about a neighbor living on the street in Los Angeles’ Skid Row, on weekdays you can contact a multidisciplinary street outreach team, which includes a nurse, a mental health specialist, and a substance abuse counselor, at 213-680-6333. Organized by the LA County Department of Health Services Housing for Health Division, these outreach teams connect individuals who are experiencing homelessness in Skid Row to services and housing. They have placed 150 individuals in permanent supportive housing since January.

To help those who are struggling with homelessness and mental illness in the long-term, support evidence-based programs that provide housing and support. Skid Row Housing Trust is committed to building housing and health resources that result in better neighborhoods where everyone has a safe place to call home.

Listen to the full interview.

LA County Board of Supervisors Commends Star Apartments for Innovation

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Board of Supervisors Commendation

Los Angeles County Supervisors Mark Ridley-Thomas, Sheila Kuehl (left) and Don Knabe (right) celebrate the commendation with Skid Row Housing Trust’s CAO Monique Davis, CEO Mike Alvidrez, Director of Asset Management Jo-Anne Cohen and COO Tonja Boykin.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas presented a commendation to Skid Row Housing Trust to celebrate our innovative Star Apartments. The building was recently named one of the 25 Best Inventions of 2015 by TIME Magazine for launching permanent supportive housing into a new era of design for health, wellness and community revitalization. The Star is a nationally recognized model studied by organizations and local governments seeking to address the root causes of homelessness in their respective communities. “Enhancing the pipeline of quality affordable housing for all residents, especially our most vulnerable, has become one of the most pressing issues of our time,” said Supervisor Ridley-Thomas. “The homeless crisis that exists in Los Angeles County requires a bold new vision and Star Apartments is a defining example of what can and must be done.”

Star Apartments is the product of Skid Row Housing Trust’s pioneering partnership with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS). DHS funds case management and supportive services at Star Apartments, and in exchange it identifies and refers individuals to the Star who are homeless and frequent utilizers of its emergency healthcare services. This partnership not only saves lives, but also saves the public millions of dollars that would otherwise be spent on inpatient and emergency care.

Designed by the world-renowned and award-winning Michael Maltzan Architecture, Star Apartments is an iconic building that aims to inspire residents and the surrounding community. A LEED for Homes Platinum development, the Star features 102 units of permanent supportive housing terraced above a Health & Wellness Center, which includes a community kitchen, art room, running/walking track, and exercise space. Residents can also enjoy a raised community garden, and multiple outdoor patio spaces for group activities. On the ground floor, the Star houses a clinic operated by DHS, which serves both Star residents and the surrounding community. It is also headquarters for DHS’ Housing for Health Division, a ground-breaking team that is committed to funneling resources towards the most critical determinant of health: housing.

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Skid Row Housing Trust: Housing is Healthcare

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LA Downtowner: For the last 25 years, the Skid Row Housing Trust (SRHT) has been committed to converting SRO’s (single resident occupancy) and otherwise dilapidated hotels into high quality apartments for Downtown’s homeless. Their ‘Housing First’ philosophy sees providing housing as the first step in ending the homelessness cycle.

“With a place to live, I can work towards a better life.”

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Haniff is celebrating the start of a new career this Thanksgiving. Four years ago, Haniff’s life was ripped apart when his mother suddenly passed away. In between jobs, the death of his mother triggered a period of depression that rendered him unable to seek new employment. Haniff, a longtime resident of South Los Angeles, started sleeping on friend’s couches when money ran out, and eventually he turned to shelters on Skid Row. Haniff struggled to treat high blood pressure and kidney disease without the stability of a permanent home, and his health declined as he lost hope for the future.

Last year the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services referred Haniff to Skid Row Housing Trust’s Star Apartments, moving him into permanent supportive housing designed for people living with chronic health conditions. With both a medical clinic and a wellness center on site, the Star Apartments was a sanctuary where Haniff could heal.

With the foundation of a permanent home and a supportive community, Haniff graduated from L.A. Kitchen’s culinary job training program, and he was recently hired as a prep cook. “It wears you down moving from place to place, and you can’t find a sense of normal. You can’t do anything but exist,” said Haniff. “Now I have a refuge and a routine. With a place to live, I can work towards a better life.”

Help more people struggling with chronic health and mental health conditions escape the cycle of homelessness by supporting Skid Row Housing Trust’s innovative permanent supportive housing. Please consider making a recurring monthly donation to fund evidence-based programs that help residents build healthier futures. Take part in permanently ending homelessness in Los Angeles by giving today.

Grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation for Long-Term Support of Residents

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We are proud to announce that the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation awarded the Trust a two-year, $400,000 grant to improve our wrap-around supportive services, allowing us to better address the long-term needs of residents who struggle with chronic health conditions. While the security of a permanent home is the first step towards safety, stability and wellness, ongoing access to essential health services is critical to a better quality of life that will last. For instance, the Trust has been developing “aging in place” strategies to help the increasing number of older residents continue living independently for as long as possible, including targeted workshops on depression, hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, and home safety. With the support of the Hilton Foundation, we will continue working to identify and fill gaps in our outreach, housing, and health services so that we can continue breaking the cycle of homelessness and hospitalization.

The Hilton Foundation was created in 1944 by international business pioneer Conrad N. Hilton, who founded Hilton Hotels and left his fortune to help the world’s disadvantaged and vulnerable people. The Foundation currently conducts strategic initiatives in six priority areas: providing safe water, ending chronic homelessness, preventing substance use, helping children affected by HIV and AIDS, supporting transition-age youth in foster care, and extending Conrad Hilton’s support for the work of Catholic Sisters. In addition, following selection by an independent international jury, the Foundation annually awards the $2 million Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize to a nonprofit organization doing extraordinary work to reduce human suffering. From its inception, the Foundation has awarded more than $1 billion in grants, distributing $100 million in the U.S. and around the world in 2014. The Foundation’s current assets are approximately $2.5 billion. For more information, please visit www.hiltonfoundation.org.

California using healthcare dollars to run housing for homeless

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Healthcare Finance News: The state is asking the federal government for permission to use Medicaid money to help put the most medically fragile homeless people in housing.