Brent ToderianDec 13, 2023
“In Finland, the number of homeless people has fallen sharply. Those affected receive a small apartment & counselling with no preconditions. 4 out of 5 people affected make their way back into a stable life. And all this is CHEAPER than accepting homelessness.” https://t.co/EH3reri9lz
Show threadwigglyDec 13, 2023
@BrentToderian Are drugs a factor there? I've read that alcohol and coke are, dunno about the stuff that's killing 2/day in my city. This 3 year old article doesn't say a word about substance use, or how Finns deal with it.
Show threadShine

@wiggly @BrentToderian That's where the "preconditions" come in. Plenty of countries have some program to help people get from streets, but the usual condition is "No substance abuse". And from my experience, getting out of addiction (in my case nicotine) if your life situation and mental health are bad is near impossible.

I've read another article about this program in Finland, and they specifically mentioned that addicts are getting help with their addiction after their living situation stabilizes.

Dec 18, 2023 at 7:02pmWeb
Show threadwigglyDec 19, 2023

@shine @BrentToderian My personal experience with addiction mirrors yours, but note that I'm not advocating for abstinence first (or anything, for that matter).

It's well-established that such an approach only works for a small minority of users, including those using legal substances like nicotine and alcohol.

I'll look for more info on how Finland integrates their other health programs with this housing policy, thanks for the reply.