Homeless youths where?

Imagine a place where thousand of teens were homeless, many sleeping on park benches, hungry, and vulnerable. No, this is not a far-away land or third-world country; it’s here in the United States: 1.6 million children will be homeless for some period right here in America, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Office of Applied Studies

It’s hard to believe that in one of the richest nations that we would actually have teens walking the streets with no place to go. You might think that these are the wayward teen or the nonconformist, or oppositional defiant teens. But, statistics show that most teens run away to escape abuse they experience at home. Almost 20%-40% of homeless youths identify themselves as LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender), according to a 2006 report by the National Coalition for the Homeless. Regardless of the reason, the number of homeless children is growing, and the hardship that teens face on the street is even greater than that faced by adults.

Finding shelter as a teen is particularly challenging because many shelters have only a few "youth" beds allotted. There is already a shortage of shelters so the availability is even less for teens. Teens also are particularly vulnerable to sexual predators and human traffickers. Many start by trading sex for food, which puts them at risk of HIV, physical abuse, and likely drug abuse.

Although many of us assume that this is a problem relegated to the inner city, the reality is that these children come from all areas, all cities, and all states. The majority of homeless teens are white (57%), black or African American comprises (27%), then American Indian and Alaskan (3%), according to the SAMHSA Office of Applied Studies (2004). As medical professionals, our critical role is to identify the at-risk teens.

Once we recognize that a teen is in dispute with his or her family because of sexual orientation, drug use, or as a victim of sexual abuse, we have taken the first step to identify a patient at risk.

The second step is to know what resources are available to assist teens that are homeless. The National Runaway Safeline – by phone, at 1-800-RUNAWAY (1-800-786-2929) or at their website, 1800runaway.org – is the national hotline designed to help keep America’s runaway, homeless, and at-risk youth safe and off the streets and to provides access to local shelters.

Homelessness is a growing crisis that affects our youth. If we understand that many of these teens are escaping abuse, it may help to explain why they end up in these situations and to define the support that they need. Remember that shelters are always in need of donations and volunteers.

Dr. Pearce is a pediatrician in Frankfort, Ill. E-mail her at [email protected].

Imagine a place where thousand of teens were homeless, many sleeping on park benches, hungry, and vulnerable. No, this is not a far-away land or third-world country; it’s here in the United States: 1.6 million children will be homeless for some period right here in America, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Office of Applied Studies

It’s hard to believe that in one of the richest nations that we would actually have teens walking the streets with no place to go. You might think that these are the wayward teen or the nonconformist, or oppositional defiant teens. But, statistics show that most teens run away to escape abuse they experience at home. Almost 20%-40% of homeless youths identify themselves as LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender), according to a 2006 report by the National Coalition for the Homeless. Regardless of the reason, the number of homeless children is growing, and the hardship that teens face on the street is even greater than that faced by adults.

Finding shelter as a teen is particularly challenging because many shelters have only a few "youth" beds allotted. There is already a shortage of shelters so the availability is even less for teens. Teens also are particularly vulnerable to sexual predators and human traffickers. Many start by trading sex for food, which puts them at risk of HIV, physical abuse, and likely drug abuse.

Although many of us assume that this is a problem relegated to the inner city, the reality is that these children come from all areas, all cities, and all states. The majority of homeless teens are white (57%), black or African American comprises (27%), then American Indian and Alaskan (3%), according to the SAMHSA Office of Applied Studies (2004). As medical professionals, our critical role is to identify the at-risk teens.

Once we recognize that a teen is in dispute with his or her family because of sexual orientation, drug use, or as a victim of sexual abuse, we have taken the first step to identify a patient at risk.

The second step is to know what resources are available to assist teens that are homeless. The National Runaway Safeline – by phone, at 1-800-RUNAWAY (1-800-786-2929) or at their website, 1800runaway.org – is the national hotline designed to help keep America’s runaway, homeless, and at-risk youth safe and off the streets and to provides access to local shelters.

Homelessness is a growing crisis that affects our youth. If we understand that many of these teens are escaping abuse, it may help to explain why they end up in these situations and to define the support that they need. Remember that shelters are always in need of donations and volunteers.

Dr. Pearce is a pediatrician in Frankfort, Ill. E-mail her at [email protected].

Imagine a place where thousand of teens were homeless, many sleeping on park benches, hungry, and vulnerable. No, this is not a far-away land or third-world country; it’s here in the United States: 1.6 million children will be homeless for some period right here in America, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Office of Applied Studies

It’s hard to believe that in one of the richest nations that we would actually have teens walking the streets with no place to go. You might think that these are the wayward teen or the nonconformist, or oppositional defiant teens. But, statistics show that most teens run away to escape abuse they experience at home. Almost 20%-40% of homeless youths identify themselves as LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender), according to a 2006 report by the National Coalition for the Homeless. Regardless of the reason, the number of homeless children is growing, and the hardship that teens face on the street is even greater than that faced by adults.

Finding shelter as a teen is particularly challenging because many shelters have only a few "youth" beds allotted. There is already a shortage of shelters so the availability is even less for teens. Teens also are particularly vulnerable to sexual predators and human traffickers. Many start by trading sex for food, which puts them at risk of HIV, physical abuse, and likely drug abuse.

Although many of us assume that this is a problem relegated to the inner city, the reality is that these children come from all areas, all cities, and all states. The majority of homeless teens are white (57%), black or African American comprises (27%), then American Indian and Alaskan (3%), according to the SAMHSA Office of Applied Studies (2004). As medical professionals, our critical role is to identify the at-risk teens.

Once we recognize that a teen is in dispute with his or her family because of sexual orientation, drug use, or as a victim of sexual abuse, we have taken the first step to identify a patient at risk.

The second step is to know what resources are available to assist teens that are homeless. The National Runaway Safeline – by phone, at 1-800-RUNAWAY (1-800-786-2929) or at their website, 1800runaway.org – is the national hotline designed to help keep America’s runaway, homeless, and at-risk youth safe and off the streets and to provides access to local shelters.

Homelessness is a growing crisis that affects our youth. If we understand that many of these teens are escaping abuse, it may help to explain why they end up in these situations and to define the support that they need. Remember that shelters are always in need of donations and volunteers.

Dr. Pearce is a pediatrician in Frankfort, Ill. E-mail her at [email protected].