Translating Universal Health Care for the Homeless: Barriers and potential facilitating factors for accessing health care amongst street dwellers in India

Abstract

Urban health policy has remained a neglected area in India, and amongst the urban poor, the homeless remain the most deprived, neglected and stigmatized group. While they suffer from a large burden of disease, there are a variety of reasons that prevent them from accessing the available health care services – particularly in the public health sector. These barriers have been poorly understood and documented. This report, based upon a detailed study of homeless participants in New Delhi, India, seeks to highlight the systemic changes that would be required within public health systems to enable street dwellers to avail of their services and realise the conceptual ambit of ' health for all' in the context of homeless persons.