Harm reduction intervention for severe drug and/or alcohol dependence among people who are homeless
PI: Dr Tessa Parkes
Funded by: National Institute for Health Research
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Dr Hannah Carver
Lecturer in Substance Use
Sociology, Social Policy & Criminology 4T26, RG Bomont Building, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA
Contact details
- Email hannah.carver@stir.ac.uk
- Telephone+44 (0)1786 467734
ORCID 
0000-0002-6846-2661
About me
I am a Lecturer in Substance Use in the Faculty of Social Sciences. My research interests include substance use, vulnerable populations, health inequalities, harm reduction and qualitative methodology. Prior to joining the University of Stirling I completed a PhD at Edinburgh Napier University. My PhD research looked at substance use communication between looked after young people and their formal carers.
Award
An international and intersectional dialogue on how to reduce harm and promote wellbeing amongst people who have housing, health and substance use challenges: A series of knowledge exchange events
Scottish Universities Insight Institute
http://www.scottishinsight.ac.uk/…827/Default.aspx
People who experience homelessness often have intersecting health problems including poor mental and physical health and problem substance use (Hewett & Halligan 2010). The co-occurrence of these three problems has been termed ‘tri-morbidity’. Problem substance use is often a contributing factor to someone becoming homeless and accounts for over a third of deaths in homeless people (Crisis 2011). Engagement with treatment services, particularly those which expect abstinence, can be extremely challenging (Collins et al. 2016). While harm reduction approaches are recommended for those unlikely to achieve abstinence (Raistrick et al. 2006), there is virtually no specific guidance on how harms from problem substance use can be reduced for homeless people. International models of care and housing provision exist but their relevance to Scotland has not been systematically explored. To address this gap we will create a dialogue on international, national and local best practices in this area and, most critically, on how we can work better together across sectors and disciplines to develop Scottish solutions. We will bring together a diverse group who have substantial knowledge of the issues to develop a nuanced understanding of the current position and how this can better inform policy and practice developments going forward.
Professional membership
Addiction and the Family International Network - Member
British Psychological Society - Member
British Psychological Society
Society for the Study of Addiction - Member