Exploring Youth Homelessness in Canada: Causes, Impacts, and Systems

This essay delves into the critical issue of youth homelessness in Canada, focusing on the population aged 13 to 24 who live independently and lack adequate social support. It highlights the increasing rates of youth homelessness due to factors like poverty, lack of affordable housing, and sys...Read More

Running head: ENDING HOMELESSNESS
ENDING HOMELESSNESS
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ENDING HOMELESSNESS
Homelessness is dangerous, devastating and isolating. On an average they die within just 47
years and they are nine times more likely to take their own life than the common public. People
become homeless due to several different reasons ranging from family issues, lack of housing,
unemployment etc. However, it impacts on the individual and this in turn has an adverse impact on
the wider society. For this essay, the chosen population of homeless people is that of the youth
population. This paper is going to elaborate on describing this homeless population and the results
behind their homelessness. It shall also shed light on the different social and health issues along with
different systems that influence them. Lastly, it shall also recommend some measures to improve the
conditions of these people.
The homeless youth population is that population which comprise of homeless youths from
13 to 24 years of age. This population lives independently of their parents and they lack in social
supports that is of utmost importance in such a transitional period- the period in which individual
transform from their childhood to adulthood. Canada is considered to be one of the significant nations
that comprise of huge number of homeless population. About 20% of the total homeless population in
this country comprise of youths. As per the report of Feir and Akee (2018), the rate of young people
being homeless in Canada is continuously increasing. . According to the Local authorities of Canada,
the rate of young people being homeless has grown (40%) or remained the same (35%), but have not
diminished (Piat et al., 2015). It is because of the increasing level of poverty and the lack of
affordable accommodations in this nation.
It is to note that main cause of homelessness in this population is that of the shortage of
accommodations. The other cause includes the system failures in the correctional homes in Canada as
well as in the different health care (Thulien et al., 2018). Furthermore, the young people who go
homeless lack the potential and the skill to live in self-sufficient and independent way and it is
especially true for the children under the age of 18 years. Moreover, there are several children who
feel unwanted as of their step-parents torture them as of their gender identity and sexual orientation.
It is often seen that the young ones who left home and experience homelessness struggles
with high self-esteem. These cause the risk of suicides, alcohol consumptions and other negative

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ENDING HOMELESSNESS
consequences. These have a long lasting impact on the mind of the youths and might result in health
and mental illness. It is also to note that the homeless youth lack proper knowledge and education as
well as job experience. This results in the shortage of skills among them in order to find out and
maintain their employment. Furthermore, they suffer with several different types of health issues like
respiratory problems, depression, injuries and poor nutrition. They also become the victim of social
violence, child labour and are forced to engage in multiple sex activities.
There are several children welfare systems who take these homeless youth to protect them
child abuse. With the same, the children who are forsaken by their own family members are taken by
these systems as well. Though most of the times, some children find homes and caring parents but
also sometimes, the complete opposite takes place. These children are afflicted by the contusion that
they experience and most of the times they find it very difficult to get adjusted with their families,
situations and new parents. In these cases, they feel abandoned and unwanted.
In Calgary, there are many programs which work with this young homeless population. One
of them are the “Aunt Leah’s Link Program” which aims at providing support to large range of fields
comprising of housing, goal setting, employment and education (Rutman & Hubberstey, 2016). The
other one is the “Family Reconnect Program”. It aims at connecting these homeless populations with
their parents and provides them with better families (Ruiz-Casares et al., 2015). Clients access this
program by means of volunteers who help out with the local communities. These volunteers reach in
different communities and the visitors there participates in the programs conducted by them and
inform them regarding the homeless youths who are there in the very community.
It is suggested that in order to help the youths who experience homelessness; it is very
important to make some supportive transitions to the adulthood so as to avoid them living their life in
the streets. Also, the Canadian government should take proper measure to make the housing there
affordable so that this condition can be lessen. With the same, the health professional should try to
improve the health of this population and should meet their with all the necessary health needs. The
key barrier in this would be the non-cooperation of the stakeholders involved in this.

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References:
Feir, D. L., &Akee, R. (2018). Estimating Institutionalization and Homelessness for Status First
Nations in Canada: A Method and Implications. The International Indigenous Policy
Journal, 9(4), 2.
Piat, M., Polvere, L., Kirst, M., Voronka, J., Zabkiewicz, D., Plante, M. C., ...& Goering, P. (2015).
Pathways into homelessness: Understanding how both individual and structural factors
contribute to and sustain homelessness in Canada. Urban Studies, 52(13), 2366-2382.
Ruiz-Casares, M., Kolyn, L., Sullivan, R., & Rousseau, C. (2015). Parenting adolescents from ethno-
cultural backgrounds: A scan of community-based programs in Canada for the promotion of
adolescent mental health. Children and Youth Services Review, 53, 10-16.
Rutman, D., &Hubberstey, C. (2016). Is anybody there? Informal supports accessed and sought by
youth from foster care. Children and Youth Services Review, 63, 21-27.
Thulien, N. S., Gastaldo, D., Hwang, S. W., &McCay, E. (2018). The elusive goal of social
integration: A critical examination of the socio-economic and psychosocial consequences
experienced by homeless young people who obtain housing. Canadian Journal of Public
Health, 109(1), 89-98.