New Lease on Life:Habitat Homes Improve Health

June 25, 2013 at 12:19 pm

In just two short and blistering hot weeks, a Habitat home has risen up in Parking Lot E thanks to a cadre of 125 Faculty of Medicine volunteers and their unstoppable spirit.

As the first Faculty of Medicine in Canada to partner with Habitat for Humanity, I am extremely proud of the enthusiastic support by students, faculty and staff committed to the house build.

As a partner, we have also raised funds for the build, supported as well by a major contribution from Genworth Canada. The home will be moved to its permanent location in East Kildonan in August.

Why did we undertake such a major project? As I have said many times before, we must, as a medical school, be socially accountable to our community.

A 2011 Habitat for Humanity survey of new Habitat homeowners illustrates the impact of safe and affordable housing. It found:
o Outlook changed for the better for 87 % as a result of homeownership: building equity, stability and more space were largest benefits;
o 81% felt their safety was improved;
o 64% felt that their children’s education improved;
o 36% of Habitat homeowners returned to school; and
o 50% of the children continued on to post-secondary education.

Social determinants of health are also impacted by Habitat housing. A recent CMHC study of 326 Canadian families who received Habitat homes since 2000 were surveyed on changes to their health, social and financial dynamics:
• 70 percent of homebuyers reported improved health, including reduced colds and flu, allergies, asthma symptoms and stress.
• 31 percent reported less frequent visits to the doctor and about 25 percent said they missed fewer days of work because of illness; and
• 65 percent reported their children’s confidence had improved

When we kicked off our two-week build June 10, Minister of Health Theresa Oswald talked about students giving up holiday time to volunteer because they “got” that a safe and affordable house was key to health.

I want to thank all volunteers who gave their time (about 1,000 hours in total!) who “got” the valuable purpose behind our Habitat build. A special thanks to Dr. Bruce Martin, Associate Dean, Students who organized the build; co-chair Dr. Gerry Minuk, Professor/ Section Head, Hepatology, Internal Medicine; U of M Bannatyne Campus Physical Plant for ensuring a smooth operation; and to Aramark for generously supplying all food and beverages to volunteers throughout the two-week build.

It has been an amazing couple of weeks for those of us who participated in the build working collaboratively with colleagues and students, observing the skilled and patient Habitat leaders with the many novice builders, and realizing that we, as a Faculty of Medicine, made a difference: owning a home is now a reality for a Winnipeg family in need.

Tell us about your experience volunteering on the Habitat build!