For decades, public health experts have been studying techniques for expanding healthy choices and decreasing risky behavior in an effort to improve overall community health. But attention is now increasingly shifting to something often overlooked when considering our health – quality of housing.
Health experts and healthcare systems are beginning to consider how the quality of a patient’s housing impacts both physical and mental health. In fact, there are numerous studies that have identified housing as a key social determinant of health. In other words, along with family influences, income, and education, housing is one of several primary factors that impact one’s behavior, environmental conditions, and access to resources.