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Objectives: The aims of the present study were to (i) assess the quality of housing for patients receiving treatment from an area mental health service; (ii) compare estimates of quality of housing using two different methods: housing type versus housing characteristics; (iii) determine whether either method for assessing quality is more useful that a combination; and (iv) examine the relationship between housing quality and case manager's assessment of the impact of the housing on the patient's mental disorder., Methods: A survey was developed that included the demographics of the patient; housing type; living arrangements; housing characteristics as assessed by the patient's case manager; and an overall assessment by the case manager of the impact that the housing has on the patient's mental disorder. Case managers were asked to complete the housing survey on all patients they saw in the community during a 2 week period in 2003. The social worker for the inpatient unit completed the survey for all patients admitted to the inpatient unit over a 3 month period., Results: Surveys were completed for a total of 362 patients. Just under 10% of patients were identified as homeless in that the person either had no housing or was living in a shelter or accommodation frequently associated with homeless persons. Almost half of the patients in the sample had housing that was either not affordable, not secure, not safe or not appropriate to their needs, that is, their housing met at least one of a range of criteria defining poor-quality housing. Sixty-one patients (16.9%) had housing that was considered by their case managers to have a substantial negative impact on their mental illness., Conclusions: Almost half of the patients treated by an area mental health service appeared to have poor-quality housing. Housing characteristics identified a higher proportion of people with poor-quality housing than did housing type. Case managers' assessments generally failed to identify a potential negative impact of poor quality housing on the person's mental disorder.

Objective: Homelessness among people with a mental illness is a serious issue. Objective: The study aimed to identify the types of housing available for people with a mental illness in the region; to develop an audit tool to assess the housing of patients of the mental health service; and to pilot this audit tool., Method: Key informants were interviewed to obtain information about the type of housing options available in the Loddon Campaspe Southern Mallee Region. This information was used to develop a survey to audit the housing status of existing patients of the area mental health service. A pilot study using the survey was completed by case managers for 81 patients who were being case managed by the area mental health service., Results: There were a wide variety of housing options in the region, but housing availability was not evenly distributed. Although most patients lived in owned or rented accommodation, a substantial proportion of patients had difficulties with accessing the required services, the affordability of their housing, uncertainty of tenure or were at risk of violence within their housing., Conclusions: A substantial proportion of patients treated by a rural area mental health service had lived in impoverished housing.

Objective: Homelessness among people with a mental illness is a serious issue. The purpose of the present study was to identify the types of housing available for people with a mental illness in the region, to develop an audit tool to assess the housing of patients of the mental health service, and to pilot this audit tool., Methods: Key informants were interviewed to obtain information about the type of housing options available in the Loddon Campaspe Southern Mallee Region, Victoria, Australia. This information was used to develop a survey to audit the housing status of existing patients of the area mental health service. A pilot study using the survey was completed by case managers for 81 patients who were being case managed by the area mental health service., Results: There was a wide variety of housing options in the region but housing availability was not evenly distributed. Although most patients lived in owned or rented accommodation, a substantial proportion of patients had difficulties with accessing the required services, the affordability of their housing, uncertainty of tenure or were at risk of violence within their housing., Conclusions: A substantial proportion of patients treated by a rural area mental health service had lived in impoverished housing.