A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability Study
BackgroundHealth care providers are increasingly screening patients for unmet social needs (eg, food, housing, transportation, and social isolation) and referring patients to relevant community-based resources and social services. Patients’ connection to referred services is...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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JMIR Publications
2022-10-01
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| Series: | JMIR Research Protocols |
| Online Access: | https://www.researchprotocols.org/2022/10/e37316 |
| _version_ | 1797734645656190976 |
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| author | Tyler Lian Hadley Reid Abigail Rader Sarah Dewitt-Feldman Elmira Hezarkhani Elizabeth Gu Malik Scott Kate Kutzer Sahil Sandhu Carolyn Crowder Kristin Ito Howard Eisenson Janet Prvu Bettger Ryan J Shaw Allison A Lewinski David Y Ming Hayden B Bosworth Leah L Zullig Bryan C Batch Connor Drake |
| author_facet | Tyler Lian Hadley Reid Abigail Rader Sarah Dewitt-Feldman Elmira Hezarkhani Elizabeth Gu Malik Scott Kate Kutzer Sahil Sandhu Carolyn Crowder Kristin Ito Howard Eisenson Janet Prvu Bettger Ryan J Shaw Allison A Lewinski David Y Ming Hayden B Bosworth Leah L Zullig Bryan C Batch Connor Drake |
| author_sort | Tyler Lian |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
BackgroundHealth care providers are increasingly screening patients for unmet social needs (eg, food, housing, transportation, and social isolation) and referring patients to relevant community-based resources and social services. Patients’ connection to referred services is often low, however, suggesting the need for additional support to facilitate engagement with resources. SMS text messaging presents an opportunity to address barriers related to contacting resources in an accessible, scalable, and low-cost manner.
ObjectiveIn this multi-methods pilot study, we aim to develop an automated SMS text message–based intervention to promote patient connection to referred social needs resources within 2 weeks of the initial referral and to evaluate its feasibility and patient acceptability. This protocol describes the intervention, conceptual underpinnings, study design, and evaluation plan to provide a detailed illustration of how SMS technology can complement current social needs screening and referral practice patterns without disrupting care.
MethodsFor this pilot prospective cohort study, this SMS text message–based intervention augments an existing social needs screening, referral, and navigation program at a federally qualified health center. Patients who received at least one referral for any identified unmet social need are sent 2 rounds of SMS messages over 2 weeks. The first round consists of 5-10 messages that deliver descriptions of and contact information for the referred resources. The second round consists of 2 messages that offer a brief reminder to contact the resources. Participants will evaluate the intervention via a survey and a semistructured interview, informed by an adapted technology acceptance model. Rapid qualitative and thematic analysis will be used to extract themes from the responses. Primary outcomes are implementation feasibility and patient acceptability. Secondary outcomes relate to intervention effectiveness: self-reported attempt to connect and successful connection to referred resources 2 weeks after the initial referral encounter.
ResultsThe study received regulatory approval in May 2021, and we anticipate enrolling 15-20 participants for this initial pilot.
ConclusionsThis protocol presents detailed implementation methods about a novel automated SMS intervention for social care integration within primary care. By sharing the study protocol early, we intend to facilitate the development and adoption of similar tools across different clinical settings, as more health care providers seek to address the unmet social needs of patients. Study findings will provide practical insights into the design and implementation of SMS text message–based interventions to improve social and medical care coordination.
International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/37316 |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:47:21Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5f3e8cc94aae4ea4845d9fe060f0062d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1929-0748 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:47:21Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | JMIR Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | JMIR Research Protocols |
| spelling | doaj.art-5f3e8cc94aae4ea4845d9fe060f0062d2023-08-28T23:14:34ZengJMIR PublicationsJMIR Research Protocols1929-07482022-10-011110e3731610.2196/37316A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability StudyTyler Lianhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-4065-8416Hadley Reidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-4329-7831Abigail Raderhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-6315-9129Sarah Dewitt-Feldmanhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-9583-634XElmira Hezarkhanihttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-3488-509XElizabeth Guhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-2222-0819Malik Scotthttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-8773-7288Kate Kutzerhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-3220-6815Sahil Sandhuhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-6458-5253Carolyn Crowderhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1972-5653Kristin Itohttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-0606-2275Howard Eisensonhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-0400-7528Janet Prvu Bettgerhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-9708-8413Ryan J Shawhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-6800-6503Allison A Lewinskihttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-1356-1857David Y Minghttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2836-6656Hayden B Bosworthhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-6188-9825Leah L Zullighttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-6638-409XBryan C Batchhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-7138-2064Connor Drakehttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-5393-6246 BackgroundHealth care providers are increasingly screening patients for unmet social needs (eg, food, housing, transportation, and social isolation) and referring patients to relevant community-based resources and social services. Patients’ connection to referred services is often low, however, suggesting the need for additional support to facilitate engagement with resources. SMS text messaging presents an opportunity to address barriers related to contacting resources in an accessible, scalable, and low-cost manner. ObjectiveIn this multi-methods pilot study, we aim to develop an automated SMS text message–based intervention to promote patient connection to referred social needs resources within 2 weeks of the initial referral and to evaluate its feasibility and patient acceptability. This protocol describes the intervention, conceptual underpinnings, study design, and evaluation plan to provide a detailed illustration of how SMS technology can complement current social needs screening and referral practice patterns without disrupting care. MethodsFor this pilot prospective cohort study, this SMS text message–based intervention augments an existing social needs screening, referral, and navigation program at a federally qualified health center. Patients who received at least one referral for any identified unmet social need are sent 2 rounds of SMS messages over 2 weeks. The first round consists of 5-10 messages that deliver descriptions of and contact information for the referred resources. The second round consists of 2 messages that offer a brief reminder to contact the resources. Participants will evaluate the intervention via a survey and a semistructured interview, informed by an adapted technology acceptance model. Rapid qualitative and thematic analysis will be used to extract themes from the responses. Primary outcomes are implementation feasibility and patient acceptability. Secondary outcomes relate to intervention effectiveness: self-reported attempt to connect and successful connection to referred resources 2 weeks after the initial referral encounter. ResultsThe study received regulatory approval in May 2021, and we anticipate enrolling 15-20 participants for this initial pilot. ConclusionsThis protocol presents detailed implementation methods about a novel automated SMS intervention for social care integration within primary care. By sharing the study protocol early, we intend to facilitate the development and adoption of similar tools across different clinical settings, as more health care providers seek to address the unmet social needs of patients. Study findings will provide practical insights into the design and implementation of SMS text message–based interventions to improve social and medical care coordination. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/37316https://www.researchprotocols.org/2022/10/e37316 |
| spellingShingle | Tyler Lian Hadley Reid Abigail Rader Sarah Dewitt-Feldman Elmira Hezarkhani Elizabeth Gu Malik Scott Kate Kutzer Sahil Sandhu Carolyn Crowder Kristin Ito Howard Eisenson Janet Prvu Bettger Ryan J Shaw Allison A Lewinski David Y Ming Hayden B Bosworth Leah L Zullig Bryan C Batch Connor Drake A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability Study JMIR Research Protocols |
| title | A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability Study |
| title_full | A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability Study |
| title_fullStr | A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability Study |
| title_short | A Tailored SMS Text Message–Based Intervention to Facilitate Patient Access to Referred Community-Based Social Needs Resources: Protocol for a Pilot Feasibility and Acceptability Study |
| title_sort | tailored sms text message based intervention to facilitate patient access to referred community based social needs resources protocol for a pilot feasibility and acceptability study |
| url | https://www.researchprotocols.org/2022/10/e37316 |
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