Pandemic Preparedness and Homelessness in Canada

Summary

This collected volume features chapters that take a broad look at issues involved in pandemic planning for homeless populations, detail city-specific responses to the H1N1 outbreak and provide a collective comparative look at the self-reported health and wellness of homeless individuals in the four cities. Each chapter offers unique insights into the issues of pandemic planning, preparedness and response in relation to homelessness in Canada.

The threat of a pandemic outbreak is always a serious one that challenges the already-strained sectors working with homeless individuals. This book offers insights from a multi-year, multi-site study on how pandemic planning unfolded in cities across Canada for the H1N1 outbreak. It is intended to serve as a resource, to share lessons and to learn from one another’s strategies and strengths. The best response to a pandemic outbreak for people experiencing homelessness is to address the social and structural barriers that produce and reproduce their vulnerabilities in the first place.