Housing and Health

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Anchor lead: Housing figures large in frequent hospitalization, Elizabeth Tracey reports

Can helping people with chronic health conditions find stable housing reduce how often they need to be hospitalized? Studies show that housing is a huge factor among social determinants of health, and Redonda Miller, president of the Johns Hopkins Hospital, says that’s why a group of hospital presidents decided to work together on this issue.

Miller: Imagine if you have a health condition like diabetes and you don’t have a home. How in the world are you supposed to manage your sugar if you have no place to store your medications, you don’t know where your next meal is coming from or what it is, and where you’re even going to wake up the next morning. It makes managing chronic conditions almost impossible. So we decided to convene the ten city hospital presidents to ask what can we do to help? We have the opportunity to work together to provide 200 homes for patients who are experiencing homelessness.  :32

Miller says early results are so good another 200 homes are planned. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.