Commentary: Enhancing Health Data for Systems Change to Prevent Homelessness in Canada

Housing is a critical social determinant of health, yet until recently, hospitals did not routinely collect data on homelessness. National homelessness coding mandates have brought attention to an often poorly represented issue, but largely reaffirm existing evidence - homelessness is a growing public health issue. Governments and health systems should not just document the ongoing crisis but also leverage administrative data to prevent homelessness. Policies aimed at early detection, cross-sectoral data integration and affordable housing are needed to address the upstream drivers of homelessness.