Table 1 Characteristics of study participants. Data are given as numbers (%), unless otherwise specified.
| Â | All participants (N = 1191) | With current drug problem (n = 475) | Without current drug problem (n = 716) | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Age, mean (SD) | 36.2 (12.3) | 34.2 (11.1) | 37.5 (12.9) | < 0.001 |
Sex/family status | Â | Â | Â | < 0.001 |
   Single male | 603 (50.6) | 317 (66.7) | 286 (39.9) |  |
   Single female | 304 (25.5) | 125 (26.3) | 179 (25.0) |  |
   Adult accompanied by children | 283 (23.7) | 33 (6.9) | 250 (34.9) |  |
Race/ethnicity | Â | Â | Â | < 0.001 |
   White | 662 (55.6) | 300 (63.2) | 362 (50.6) |  |
   Black | 266 (22.3) | 72 (15.2) | 194 (27.1) |  |
   First Nations | 100 (8.4) | 60 (12.6) | 40 (5.6) |  |
   Other race/ethnicity | 163 (13.7) | 43 (9.1) | 120 (16.8) |  |
Region of birth | Â | Â | Â | < 0.001 |
   Canada | 812 (68.2) | 392 (82.5) | 420 (58.7) |  |
   Outside Canada | 379 (31.8) | 83 (17.5) | 296 (41.3) |  |
Education | Â | Â | Â | < 0.001 |
   Some high school or less | 597 (50.3) | 290 (61.3) | 307 (42.9) |  |
   High school or equivalent | 255 (21.5) | 92 (19.5) | 163 (22.8) |  |
   Vocational training/college or above | 336 (28.3) | 91 (19.2) | 245 (34.3) |  |
Age at first episode of homelessness, mean (SD) | 28.4 (13.0) | 24.8 (11.9) | 30.9 (13.2) | < 0.001 |
Duration of current episode of homelessness in months, mean (SD) | 15.7 (35.2) | 18.7 (37.2) | 13.8 (33.7) | 0.02 |
Lifetime years of homelessness in years, mean (SD) | 3.7 (5.5) | 4.8 (5.6) | 2.9 (5.2) | < 0.001 |
Drugs and alcohol reported as an impediment from getting out of homelessness | 162 (13.6) | 128 (26.9) | 34 (4.7) | < 0.001 |
Simultaneous use of >1 drug in past month* | 501 (42.1) | 363 (76.4) | 138 (19.3) | < 0.001 |
Mean pack-years smoked (SD) | 17.8 (29.6) | 21.5 (24.6) | 15.4 (32.3) | < 0.001 |
Mental health problems (present within the last 30 days) | 444 (37.3) | 212 (44.6) | 232 (32.4) | < 0.001 |