Grant: Doctoral: Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships

Homeless and precariously housed individuals (i.e., those living in housing that lacks security or stability) experience a higher burden of mental and physical illness, and higher mortality than the general population. Recent studies have suggested that traumatic brain injury (TBI) may be extremely common and associated with the significant health challenges faced by this population. The broad objective of my doctoral research is to characterize how the brain health and general health of homeless and precariously housed individuals is affected by TBI. My specific objectives are to (1) establish how common TBI is in this population and how TBI is related to the onset and duration of homelessness, (2) evaluate factors (e.g., TBI and drug use) that accelerate or are protective of brain health over time, and (3) evaluate how new TBIs affect brain structure and health outcomes of these individuals. I will use data from the Hotel Study, which has been working since 2008 with 515 homeless and precariously housed individuals living in the impoverished Downtown Eastside neighbourhood of Vancouver, BC. The Hotel Study collects monthly and yearly assessments of health and functioning (including psychiatric symptoms, drug use, neurocognitive functioning, and MRI scans). My thesis work will be the first comprehensive study on the potential for TBI to modify brain structure and health in homeless and precariously housed individuals. We expect to find that TBI will be far more common in homeless and precariously housed individuals than the general population, that TBI will predict a faster decline in brain health, and that new TBIs will lead to poorer brain health, poorer mental health and poorer functioning. These findings will immediately contribute to improved understanding and treatment for health consequences related to TBI in this population, and will contribute to improving the health of homeless and precariously housed individuals in Canada and worldwide.