Validation study of health administrative data algorithms to identify individuals experiencing homelessness and estimate population prevalence of homelessness in Ontario, Canada.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

To validate case ascertainment algorithms for identifying individuals experiencing homelessness in health administrative databases between 2007 and 2014; and to estimate homelessness prevalence trends in Ontario, Canada, between 2007 and 2016.

Design

A population-based retrospective validation study.

Setting

Ontario, Canada, from 2007 to 2014 (validation) and 2007 to 2016 (estimation).

Participants

Our reference standard was the known housing status of a longitudinal cohort of housed (n=137 200) and homeless or vulnerably housed (n=686) individuals. Two reference standard definitions of homelessness were adopted: the housing episode and the annual housing experience (any homelessness within a calendar year).

Main outcome measures

Sensitivity,

SUBMITTER: Richard L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6797366 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature