A Systematic Review of Housing Interventions and Health

Abstract

Subject matter experts systematically reviewed evidence on the effectiveness of specific housing interventions in improving health. The panelists reviewed housing interventions associated with exposure to biological and chemical agents, structural injury hazards, and community-level interventions. Intervention studies were grouped together according to recommendations in the Guide to Community Preventive Services, which identifies similarities in the type of intervention, its delivery and setting, and the target population. Review panelists found that 11 interventions had sufficient evidence of effectiveness, 15 required more field evaluation, 19 needed formative research, and 7 either had no evidence of effectiveness or were ineffective. Although many housing conditions are associated with adverse health outcomes, sufficient evidence now shows that specific housing interventions can improve certain health outcomes. The results of these evidence reviews can inform a robust agenda for widespread implementation and further research. This article highlights the project's research methods and summary findings, and its companion articles detail the evidence reviews for specific housing interventions.

Health Effects of Neighborhood Demolition and Housing Improvement: A Prospective Controlled Study of 2 Natural Experiments in Urban Renewal

“…The reviews identified 34 interventions of unknown or inconclusive health effects and 7 that were potentially ineffective. 24 Neighborhood-level interventions such as demolishing and revitalizing poor public housing (e.g., HOPE VI 37 ), relocating residents, and various forms of neighborhood redesign yielded too little evidence to draw conclusions. 28 Some commentators have emphasized the social harms linked to housing clearance and demolition programs.…”

Health Outcomes and Green Renovation of Affordable Housing

“…5 Physical, chemical, and biological exposures in the home that produce adverse health outcomes and associated housing interventions have been reviewed elsewhere. [6][7][8][9] Data are needed to elucidate the complex links between health, buildings, and communities to enable building owners, community planners, and others to more confidently implement health-based housing interventions. This study sought to determine whether renovating low-income housing using green and healthy principles improved resident health and building performance.…”

How real are the health effects of residential energy efficiency programmes?

“…A number of systematic reviews have recently also explored the range of positive outcomes from residential energy retrofit programmes (Thomson et al, 2004(Thomson et al, , 2009(Thomson et al, , 2013Jacobs et al, 2010). Indeed the idea of co-benefits of energy policy for health, including the possibility of both intended and unintended consequences, has generated extensive research and policy interest in many disciplines over the last decade (Howden-Chapman and Chapman, 2012;Howden-Chapman and Preval, 2014;Woodward, 2014).…”