Paper
Saturday, 22 July 2006
This presentation is part of : Care of the Adult Mental Health Patient
Moving on from Homelessness: Counterstories from the Hostel Circuit
Helen B. Kirkpatrick, MScN, MEd, PhD, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
Learning Objective #1: understand and discuss the empowering role of counterstories in challenging negative or oppressive master-narratives.
Learning Objective #2: understand and discuss the role of narrative research in understanding experience and in influencing practice and health care policy.
This narrative study explores the experience of “moving on” from homelessness for individuals with major mental illnesses, after they have obtained permanent housing with supports. The three-dimensional narrative inquiry space was used for analysis of the participants’ experiences (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000). Narrative inquiry provides a valuable method to understand individual experience, specifically because each person’s journey is unique, but individual stories are developed within a social context. Twelve participants were interviewed up to three times over six months. There were various routes to homelessness, participants were homeless for varying lengths of time, and they described different journeys of “moving on”. This presentation examines these stories as counter-narratives to negative and oppressive societal master-narratives. Master-narratives oppress by deprivation of opportunity and by infiltrated consciousness. Counterstories can challenge oppressive master-narratives through altering the oppressors’ perception of the group and altering, when necessary, an oppressed person’s self perception. Several participants wanted their stories used to send messages of hope, courage and survival. The experience of homelessness for many could be described as “on the move”, in a circular pattern from shelter to shelter or street because of government policies. Permanent housing and supports allowed participants to “move on”, reconnecting with family, getting jobs and planning for the future. This presentation will focus on one particular participant’s experiences: a nurse, a severe mental illness, and no permanent address for 25 years. Being on the “hostel circuit” he thought he was living the Life of Riley. This presentation will consider how a negative societal narrative affected him, and what helped him to “move forward” after such a long period of time. His is a counterstory and he asked me, “Do you think the government will listen?” This presentation is one part of taking his story forward to challenge existing master-narratives.

See more of Care of the Adult Mental Health Patient
See more of The 17th International Nursing Research Congress Focusing on Evidence-Based Practice (19-22 July 2006)