The report - which highlight the importance of injury prevention programs - is the first in the province to give data on injury-related ER visits by people experiencing houselessness. It breaks down the data into five categories: unintentional or undetermined poisoning, violence, falls, natural or environmental injuries and suicide or self-inflicted injuries. The findings indicate that unintentional or undetermined poisoning is the leading cause of injury, with 25% of ER visits falling into this category. Other causes of injury-related ED visits include:
- Violence (19%);
- Falls (13%);
- Natural/environmental (7%); and
- Suicide (3%).
The report also indicated that 17% of individuals ended up leaving the ER without receiving treatment, although the data don’t detail whether this is due to perceived stigma, difficulties accessing healthcare or some other reason.