The purpose of this thesis was to explore the experiences of accessing health and social services for older women who have lived experience with homelessness.
Women over the age of 50 with lived experience of homelessness participated in face to face interviews where they were asked to share their experiences with accessing services in the northern British Columbia (BC) community of Prince George. They spoke about their experiences of loss and identified gaps in, and barriers to, service provision as well as challenging interactions with service providers in the community. They also recounted experiences where services and service provision work well. They shared their hopes for a better future and expressed strength and resilience in the face of many challenges. Recommendations for incorporating more client centred and trauma informed service provision as well as suggestions for future research are outlined.
