 Drug use disorders and treatment contact among homeless adults in Alameda County, CaliforniaM.J. Robertson, C. Zlotnick and A. Westerfelt American Journal of Public Health, 1997, vol. 87, issue 2, 221-228 Abstract: Objectives. This study estimates the extent and distribution of specific drug problems among homeless adults. Methods. A countywide probability sample of 564 homeless adults received structured interviews that included a standardized assessment of substance use disorders. Results. Two thirds of the sample (69.1%) had a lifetime history of a substance use disorder (including abuse of or dependence on alcohol [52.6%] or drugs [52.2%]); half had a current (52.4%) substance use disorder (including alcohol [38.8%] or drugs [31.3%]). Current drug disorders were higher among respondents who were younger, homeless longer, or sampled from the city of Oakland, Calif. Alcohol use disorders were higher among men than among women; surprisingly, drug use disorders were not. Conclusion. Rates of current drug use disorders for homeless adults were more than eight times higher than general population estimates. However, estimates of drug problems among homeless adults vary as a function of case ascertainment and sampling strategy. Estimates based only on samples from urban areas may overestimate drug problems among the area's larger homeless populations. Date: 1997 There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it. Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aph:ajpbhl:1997:87:2:221-228_2 Access Statistics for this article American Journal of Public Health is currently edited by Alfredo Morabia More articles in American Journal of Public Health from American Public Health Association |
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