Week 5: Mental Health Advocacy Infographic
Rough Draft
Assigned Marginalized Mental Health Population: Homeless
Individuals
Background: Provide a brief overview of the importance of diversity,
equity, and inclusion in mental health care for your assigned marginalized
population.
• Realizing and understanding the enhanced need for diversity, equity,
and inclusion (DEI) in mental health care for homeless individuals is
critical so that they can be treated fairly and not discriminated
against by healthcare and other services. Discrimination against
homeless individuals is called "homeism" (Canham et al., 2024).
Based on epidemiological studies, there is an average of 25-30% of
homeless individuals who have a severe chronic mental illness,
schizophrenia, for example (Padgett, 2020). Homeless individuals are
at increased risk for infectious diseases but also experience stress,
uncertainty, and safety threats, which can increase a homeless
individual's risk for developing anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD), depression, and other mental illnesses (CDC, 2024). There is
a large gap for the homeless population between the necessary mental
health needs and the available services, which causes an increased
prevalence of suicidal ideations and substance use (Padgett, 2020).
This not only puts the homeless population at having increased mental
and physical health needs but also puts them at increased risk of
death, which can lead to negative outcomes. This is important to
realize because the homeless population has a mortality rate that is
three times higher when compared to the general public (Mongelli et
al., 2020).
Current Challenges: Highlight the existing barriers faced by your
assigned marginalized mental health clients in accessing equitable and
inclusive care.
• There are many current barriers that homeless individuals face, which
include income, security, and housing, in addition to healthcare-
related barriers such as institutional, interpersonal, structural, and
intrapersonal discrimination and stigmatization (Canham et al.,
, 2024). These barriers are considered umbrellas to many other barriers
caused by discrimination and stigmatization, such as those with social
services, landlords, the general public, and their social associations
Rough Draft
Assigned Marginalized Mental Health Population: Homeless
Individuals
Background: Provide a brief overview of the importance of diversity,
equity, and inclusion in mental health care for your assigned marginalized
population.
• Realizing and understanding the enhanced need for diversity, equity,
and inclusion (DEI) in mental health care for homeless individuals is
critical so that they can be treated fairly and not discriminated
against by healthcare and other services. Discrimination against
homeless individuals is called "homeism" (Canham et al., 2024).
Based on epidemiological studies, there is an average of 25-30% of
homeless individuals who have a severe chronic mental illness,
schizophrenia, for example (Padgett, 2020). Homeless individuals are
at increased risk for infectious diseases but also experience stress,
uncertainty, and safety threats, which can increase a homeless
individual's risk for developing anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD), depression, and other mental illnesses (CDC, 2024). There is
a large gap for the homeless population between the necessary mental
health needs and the available services, which causes an increased
prevalence of suicidal ideations and substance use (Padgett, 2020).
This not only puts the homeless population at having increased mental
and physical health needs but also puts them at increased risk of
death, which can lead to negative outcomes. This is important to
realize because the homeless population has a mortality rate that is
three times higher when compared to the general public (Mongelli et
al., 2020).
Current Challenges: Highlight the existing barriers faced by your
assigned marginalized mental health clients in accessing equitable and
inclusive care.
• There are many current barriers that homeless individuals face, which
include income, security, and housing, in addition to healthcare-
related barriers such as institutional, interpersonal, structural, and
intrapersonal discrimination and stigmatization (Canham et al.,
, 2024). These barriers are considered umbrellas to many other barriers
caused by discrimination and stigmatization, such as those with social
services, landlords, the general public, and their social associations
