Permanent supportive housing (PSH) using a Housing First approach is an evidence-based intervention to end chronic homelessness by providing low-barrier affordable housing paired with flexible health and social services. However, current support services are not equipped to address the needs of the target population for PSH, which has an average age approaching 60 years old and experiences accelerated aging. This could ultimately jeopardize the success of PSH to maintain high rates of housing stability while tenants age in place. For this study, we plan to pilot an intervention known as CAPABLE in PSH.

CAPABLE, which stands for Community Aging in Place Advancing Better Living for Elders, is a client-directed, home-based intervention that consists of time-limited services from an occupational therapist, a nurse, and a handyman working collaboratively with the older adult client. CAPABLE was developed to support older adults who are returning to independent living after hospitalization and has been shown to improve functioning (activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living), decrease falls and nursing home admissions, and reduce health care costs based on multiple studies including several randomized controlled trials.9–17 CAPABLE has the potential to be used in PSH as a model of support services that can address needs of prematurely aging tenants, which could help transform PSH from an intervention that ends homelessness to an intervention that addresses homelessness and supports successful aging in place.

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