Positive Living, Positive Homes Proposal Summary
Importance of the Issue
The BC HIV community has identified housing as a critical health determinant for people living with, or at-risk of, HIV/AIDS (PHAs). There are no systematic data available in BC on housing needs of PHAs, i.e., information on availability of safe, affordable, appropriate housing; nor is there information on the relationships of housing stability, access to housing services and health outcomes to inform policy and programs. Our study will fill these gaps. In phase I, we will develop a study protocol and build capacity.
Hypotheses
Our overarching hypothesis is that quality housing and housing security are important factors contributing to the mental and physical health of PHAs, to their access to health and social services, and potentially to the prevention of HIV for those at risk. We also hypothesize that good quality and security of housing decreases unnecessary health and social service utilization and result in cost savings. Finally, we hypothesize that there are risk factors, including demographic characteristics (such as sex, ethno-cultural group, sexual orientation, and urban/rural location) and health/mental health status, which play a role in the housing status and homelessness of PHAs.
Objectives & Research Plan
The Positive Living, Positive Homes Project objectives and research plan for the catalyst grant are to:
1. Facilitate Team Development – Grounded in the principles and practices of CBR research, we will develop our multi-stakeholder team in BC, with community-based AIDS service organizations (ASOs) leading the initiative. The CBR team already established for this project includes researchers with expertise in CBR, survey design, housing, homelessness, health, psychosocial and behavioural issues, and health related quality of life in HIV; leaders in the field of policy and knowledge transfer and exchange; and PHAs and diverse communities throughout BC. We will continue to build our team to ensure diverse representation on the study. Our aim is to create a strong team that will provide diverse perspectives, understandings, and policy connections to influence social and policy change.
2. Operating Grant Proposal Development – We will develop an operating grant proposal that will be submitted to the HIV/AIDS CBR program in Fall 2012. Our study development will be modeled after the highly successful Positive Spaces, Healthy Places CBR study conducted by the OHTN and a multidisciplinary, inter-sectoral team in Ontario. In the operating grant, our aim will be to study changes in housing status of PHAs, along with factors that play a role in these changes and outcomes resulting from the changes. We will develop key research questions through workshops, teleconferences, consultation and one on one meetings between community leaders, PHAs and researchers. We will also determine the best CBR methods for collecting relevant data to create a province-wide study design in which PHAs will be followed up with for up to three years.
3. Capacity Building – We will use the proposal development meeting opportunities to develop a shared, enhanced understanding of each of the key sectors’ perspectives on HIV housing and homelessness; identify cross-sector issues and concerns; and enhance team members’ CBR understanding and skills. The collaborative nature of the project will result in a team of community leaders and research investigators that will bring the necessary perspectives and understanding of the issues to influence social and policy changes. Because of this, team members will be well-equipped to develop the research questions needed to explore current housing status and related issues for PHAs in British Columbia, and will be prepared to carry out the operating grant when it is funded.
For more information on this study, please contact Heidi Standeven at heidi@pacificaidsnetwork.org
January 11 & 12, 2012 – Presentations (*please note that the larger presentations will take some time to download):
Developing a Research Question
Positive Living, Positive Homes Draft Literature Review – December 15, 2011 - Download
Pacific AIDS Network would like to thank the Canadian Institute for Health Research for the funding to complete Phase I of this research project
