To: Dr. Erika Paterson
From: Luke Jang
Date: June 16, 2020
Subject: Proposal for Determining the Feasibility of Converting the Vacant Hospital Facility Into Homeless Shelter
Introduction
Due to the rising cost of living across Canada, homelessness is becoming a common problem across the country. For example, in Vancouver, Downtown Eastside on East Hastings is the well-known slum. The severity of homelessness in that particular area was already bad since long time ago, however, it is becoming even worse.
Statement of Problem
As the population of the homeless people on the street increases, security of the public can also be compromised due to potential criminal activities involving the homeless. Furthermore, aside from the public safety’s point of view, the homeless people are also exposed to various dangers including plaque and the extreme weathers.
Proposed Solution
One possible solution to the degradation of public safety and the well-being of the homeless people is to house the homeless people into vacant spaces of various feasible places such as vacant hospital facilities, abandoned buildings and such. Surprisingly enough, a lot of the spaces in hospital facilities are often kept vacant for a lengthy period. The reason for the vacancy cannot be discussed here due to confidentiality issues, however, it is certain that there are numerous vacancies and spaces being wasted in hospitals. Also, these vacant spaces are not only empty and are also fully functioning at the same time; lights and the heating are left on 24/7 and they never stop functioning year-round. Other than hospitals, lots of places can be used as temporary homeless shelters. Due to these reasons, a lot of places including hospitals can certainly be a temporary solution to address the issues arising from homelessness until other government programs seek for more permanent solutions.
Scope
To assess the feasibility of developing shelters for homeless people utilizing spaces being inefficiently vacant. I plan to pursue the following 5 areas of inquiry:
1. What is the approximate number of homeless people that are needing shelters ?
2. What is the approximate number of homeless people that actually want to stay in shelters ?
3. What are the potential issues for housing homeless people in shelters ?
4. Are there any current sheltering projects being planned by the government ?
5. What other supplementary resources other than a physical space would be needed to house the homeless ?
Methods
My primary data sources will include consultation with psychiatric nurses and social workers at where I work, a hospital. Aside from my workplace, I will also consult and talk to some of the police officers at my volunteer place (community policing centre). Consulting will be by either in person or by email.
Secondary sources will include internet searches on the web for statistics on my scope of research.
My Qualifications
I had volunteered closely with the homeless in the Downtown Eastside in the past. Also, I am currently working in a hospital as a security where I deal with the homeless on a daily basis. Therefore, I am familiar with the homeless people’s lifestyle as well as their behavior. My association with people in certain profession such as psychiatric nurses and police officers gives me the opportunity for an in-depth feasibility study.
Conclusion
It is clear that there is a solution needed to reduce the amount of homelessness in this city. By addressing the 5 areas of inquiry mentioned above, I would be able to determine the feasibility of providing more temporary shelters utilizing abandoned or vacant places throughout the city. With your approval, I will begin research at once.
June 20, 2020
Hello Luke,
Thank you for posting your report proposal. I have a question that needs an answer before the proposal can be approved: Who are you writing this report for? Who is your reader(s)?
If you review the instructions, you will see that one of the most important consideration, to begin, is “who is your reader(s)? Please include a description of your reader(s) and an explanation as to why this Report would be helpful to those readers.
Hi Dr.Paterson,
I do notice that I omitted the Audience section.
The intended audience for my proposal would be the administrative people in the Health Authorities as well as the policy makers like the MPs (Member of Parliament). These are the people who have the active voice in the community, therefore, the research result that is reasonable would have a fair chance to be considered by these audience.
June 24, 2020
Hello Luke,
Thank you for your response re: who is your reader(s)? Please read the instructions carefully and provide the names and position of ‘specific reader’ – who has the authority to act on your final recommendations. As it is your response is far to vague – you need to know who you are writing to before you begin, what authority does that reader(s) have? What evidence will you need to persuade that specific reader(s)? Reports are most often commissioned by a person or particular group – they are not designed for a diverse audience. So, do your research and find out who specifically you are writing for – thank you.
Thank you for your quick response Luke.
Luke, this is too many reader(s) – choose one audience. I suggest you choose the head of the Homeless Prevention Program, thank you.