Housing Vulnerability and COVID-19 Outbreaks: When Crises Collide

Erika Martino, Adelle Mansour, Rebecca Bentley

2022Urban Policy and Research26 citationsDOI

Abstract

When communities face infectious disease outbreaks such as COVID-19, their resilience is largely dependent on their social vulnerability. Housing, which functions as a precipitator and outcome of vulnerability, needs to be considered in this context. Using geospatial data, we developed a housing vulnerability index which demonstrates that COVID-19 transmission hotspots in Melbourne are potentially related to where and how people live – which in turn impacts their capacity to isolate. This analysis provides a means of both retrospectively and prospectively highlighting socio-spatial vulnerabilities that can impact transmission, suggesting that addressing some of Melbourne’s housing problems might reduce COVID-19 transmission.

Topics & Concepts

Vulnerability (computing)Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)OutbreakGeospatial analysisSocial vulnerabilityVulnerability indexContext (archaeology)Transmission (telecommunications)GeographyResilience (materials science)Psychological resilienceSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)Environmental planningEnvironmental resource managementInfectious disease (medical specialty)Computer securityCartographyDiseaseVirologyEconomicsComputer scienceMedicineClimate changePsychologyTelecommunicationsBiologyArchaeologyPsychotherapistPathologyThermodynamicsPhysicsEcologyHomelessness and Social IssuesUrban, Neighborhood, and Segregation StudiesCOVID-19 epidemiological studies