A social-return-on-investment analysis of bon secours hospital’s ‘housing for health’ affordable housing program

Community health programs aimed at addressing the social determinants of health often face challenges demonstrating their impact through traditional economic evaluation methods of return-on-investment analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, or cost-benefit analysis. Using a social-return-on-investment (SROI) analysis, we evaluated the broader social, environmental, and economic benefits of Bon Secours Hospital’s Housing for Health program, an affordable housing program aimed at addressing the social and environmental determinants affecting its community’s health in Baltimore, Maryland. Bon Secours currently has 801 units of affordable housing across twelve properties in West Baltimore. Results indicate the significant social value of the Bon Secours affordable housing program, generating between $1.30 and $1.92 of social return in the community for every dollar in yearly operating costs. These findings suggest that broader access to affordable housing could produce a positive social value and demonstrate the relevance of SROI for quantifying the impacts of community health programs.