Abstract
Background: Programs to screen for social and economic needs (SENs) are challenging to implement. Aim: To describe implementation of an SEN screening program for patients obtaining care at a federally qualified health center (FQHC). Setting: Large Chicago-area FQHC where many patients are Hispanic/Latino and insured through Medicaid. Program Description: In the program’s phase 1 (beginning April 2020), a prescreening question asked about patients’ interest in receiving community resources; staff then called interested patients. After several refinements (e.g., increased staffing, tailored reductions in screening frequency) to address challenges such as a large screening backlog, program phase 2 began in February 2021. In phase 2, a second prescreening question asked about patients’ preferred modality to learn about community resources (text/email versus phone calls). Program Evaluation: During phase 1, 8925 of 29,861 patients (30%) expressed interest in community resources. Only 40% of interested patients were successfully contacted and screened. In phase 2, 5781 of 21,737 patients (27%) expressed interest in resources; 84% of interested patients were successfully contacted by either text/email (43%) or phone (41%). Discussion: Under one-third of patients obtaining care at an FQHC expressed interest in community resources for SENs. After program refinements, rates of follow-up with interested patients substantially increased.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 128-132 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Journal of general internal medicine |
| Volume | 39 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 2024 |
Funding
We wish to acknowledge and thank the Social Determinants of Health team and volunteers at Erie Family Health Centers for their many contributions to this project. We also thank Paula Rusca, MPH, who contributed to early drafts of the manuscript, and Lisa Masinter, MD MPH, who convened the evaluation team and helped to initiate evaluation work. We additionally thank the following individuals at AllianceChicago who contributed to data collection efforts: Tina Aggarwal, MS BSN RN, Shannon Pohl, MS BSN RN, Nicole Padula, MPH, Rhein Punzalan, and Azin Tanni, MSN BSN RN. Interim evaluation results were presented at the AllianceChicago Annual Conference on May 24, 2022, the Illinois Primary Health Care Association Annual Leadership Conference on October 6, 2022, and the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting on November 6, 2022. This publication was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $1,165,817 with 0% financed with non-governmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the US Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov.
Keywords
- federally qualified health centers
- primary care
- program evaluation
- social determinants of health
- social needs
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Internal Medicine
