Gender and the Use of Veterans Health Administration Homeless Services Programs Among Iraq/Afghanistan Veterans

Dados Bibliográficos

ID9102722
AutoresOni J Blackstock (0000-0002-2787-1661, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, autor correspondente), Sally G Haskell (0000-0002-2888-2637, VA Connecticut Healthcare System, autor correspondente), Cynthia A Brandt, Cynthia Brandt (0000-0001-8179-1796, VA Connecticut Healthcare System), Rani A Desai (Yale University)
Ano2012
Volume50
Fascículo4
Páginas347-352
Data de publicação2012-04-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoMedical Care (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0025-7079 • E-ISSN: 1537-1948
EditoraOvid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1097/mlr.0b013e318245a738
PMID22422055
OpenAlexW1970445752
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas13
Referências citadas23

BACKGROUND: Female Veterans comprise 12% of Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) Veterans, the largest proportion of women to serve of any prior cohort. We sought to determine the sex-specific risk of using a Veterans Health Administration (VHA) homeless program among OEF/OIF Veterans and to identify factors associated with increased risk of program use for women compared with men. METHODS: We included OEF/OIF Veterans with at least 1 VHA clinical visit between October 1, 2001, and September 30, 2009. The study's outcome was the time to first use of a VHA homeless program. Cox proportional-hazards regression was used to estimate the relative risk of using a homeless program by sex, adjusting for relevant sociodemographic and clinical variables. Exploratory analyses examined interactions between sex and all covariates. RESULTS: Of 445,319 Veterans, 7431 (1.7%) used a VHA homeless program, of which 961 were females (1.8%), and 6470 were males (1.7%) during a median follow-up period of 3.20 years. Women were as likely as men to use a homeless program (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.02; 95% confidence interval, 0.95-1.09); median time to first use was similar for female and male Veterans (1.88 vs. 1.88 y, respectively, P=0.53). In exploratory analyses, we found increased risk of program use for women compared with men for the following subgroups: ages 26-35 years, 100% service-connected disability rating, posttraumatic stress disorder diagnosis, and northeast location. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, there was no substantial difference in the sex-specific risk of using a VHA homeless program. In light of this finding, VHA homeless programs must be prepared to recognize and address the unique needs of female OEF/OIF Veterans

Confidence interval · Hazard ratio · Proportional hazards model · Psychiatry · Demography · Homelessness and Social Issues · Medicine · Migration, Health and Trauma · Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research · Gerontology