Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patients
Abstract Background Health outcomes are strongly impacted by social determinants of health, including social risk factors and patient demographics, due to structural inequities and discrimination. Primary care is viewed as a potential medical setting to assess and address individual health-related s...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2024-04-01
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| Series: | BMC Health Services Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-024-10948-7 |
| _version_ | 1797209463046799360 |
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| author | Claire M. Starling Marjanna Smith Sadaf Kazi Arianna Milicia Rachel Grisham Emily Gruber Joseph Blumenthal Hannah Arem |
| author_facet | Claire M. Starling Marjanna Smith Sadaf Kazi Arianna Milicia Rachel Grisham Emily Gruber Joseph Blumenthal Hannah Arem |
| author_sort | Claire M. Starling |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Health outcomes are strongly impacted by social determinants of health, including social risk factors and patient demographics, due to structural inequities and discrimination. Primary care is viewed as a potential medical setting to assess and address individual health-related social needs and to collect detailed patient demographics to assess and advance health equity, but limited literature evaluates such processes. Methods We conducted an analysis of cross-sectional survey data collected from n = 507 Maryland Primary Care Program (MDPCP) practices through Care Transformation Requirements (CTR) reporting in 2022. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize practice responses on social needs screening and demographic data collection. A stepwise regression analysis was conducted to determine factors predicting screening of all vs. a targeted subset of beneficiaries for unmet social needs. Results Almost all practices (99%) reported conducting some form of social needs screening and demographic data collection. Practices reported variation in what screening tools or demographic questions were employed, frequency of screening, and how information was used. More than 75% of practices reported prioritizing transportation, food insecurity, housing instability, financial resource strain, and social isolation. Conclusions Within the MDPCP program there was widespread implementation of social needs screenings and demographic data collection. However, there was room for additional supports in addressing some challenging social needs and increasing detailed demographics. Further research is needed to understand any adjustments to clinical care in response to identified social needs or application of data for uses such as assessing progress towards health equity and the subsequent impact on clinical care and health outcomes. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:55:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-28bd62cda6bf463286b664d38854862c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1472-6963 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:55:06Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Health Services Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-28bd62cda6bf463286b664d38854862c2024-04-14T11:11:18ZengBMCBMC Health Services Research1472-69632024-04-012411810.1186/s12913-024-10948-7Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patientsClaire M. Starling0Marjanna Smith1Sadaf Kazi2Arianna Milicia3Rachel Grisham4Emily Gruber5Joseph Blumenthal6Hannah Arem7Implementation Science, Healthcare Delivery Research Program, MedStar Health Research InstituteImplementation Science, Healthcare Delivery Research Program, MedStar Health Research InstituteDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Georgetown University School of MedicineNational Center for Human Factors in Healthcare, MedStar Health Research InstituteMaryland Primary Care Program, Maryland Department of HealthMaryland Primary Care Program, Maryland Department of HealthMedStar Center for Biostatistics, Informatics and Data Science, MedStar Health Research InstituteImplementation Science, Healthcare Delivery Research Program, MedStar Health Research InstituteAbstract Background Health outcomes are strongly impacted by social determinants of health, including social risk factors and patient demographics, due to structural inequities and discrimination. Primary care is viewed as a potential medical setting to assess and address individual health-related social needs and to collect detailed patient demographics to assess and advance health equity, but limited literature evaluates such processes. Methods We conducted an analysis of cross-sectional survey data collected from n = 507 Maryland Primary Care Program (MDPCP) practices through Care Transformation Requirements (CTR) reporting in 2022. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize practice responses on social needs screening and demographic data collection. A stepwise regression analysis was conducted to determine factors predicting screening of all vs. a targeted subset of beneficiaries for unmet social needs. Results Almost all practices (99%) reported conducting some form of social needs screening and demographic data collection. Practices reported variation in what screening tools or demographic questions were employed, frequency of screening, and how information was used. More than 75% of practices reported prioritizing transportation, food insecurity, housing instability, financial resource strain, and social isolation. Conclusions Within the MDPCP program there was widespread implementation of social needs screenings and demographic data collection. However, there was room for additional supports in addressing some challenging social needs and increasing detailed demographics. Further research is needed to understand any adjustments to clinical care in response to identified social needs or application of data for uses such as assessing progress towards health equity and the subsequent impact on clinical care and health outcomes.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-024-10948-7Social needs screeningDemographic data collectionPrimary careCommunity resources |
| spellingShingle | Claire M. Starling Marjanna Smith Sadaf Kazi Arianna Milicia Rachel Grisham Emily Gruber Joseph Blumenthal Hannah Arem Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patients BMC Health Services Research Social needs screening Demographic data collection Primary care Community resources |
| title | Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patients |
| title_full | Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patients |
| title_fullStr | Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patients |
| title_full_unstemmed | Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patients |
| title_short | Understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving Maryland Medicare patients |
| title_sort | understanding social needs screening and demographic data collection in primary care practices serving maryland medicare patients |
| topic | Social needs screening Demographic data collection Primary care Community resources |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-024-10948-7 |
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