Leveraging Technology-Based Interventions to Improve Social Determinants of Health in Housing Insecure Populations: Evidence from the Samaritan Intervention

Abstract

COVID-19 has exacerbated the issue of housing insecurity in the United States, putting significantly more people at risk of becoming unhoused. Housing insecure populations have unique health-related social needs that could potentially be addressed through innovative technology-based interventions (TBIs). Organizations developing TBIs usually have divergent approaches to addressing social determinants of health in their user base and as a result include a wide diversity of components and features. However, minimal literature exists on best practices regarding the design of TBIs. This thesis aims to fill this gap by developing a set of guiding principles and important considerations for TBIs delivered to housing insecure populations using a mixed-methods evaluation of the Samaritan TBI and comparative analysis of alternative TBIs.