85 - Unmet Social Needs in Spanish and English-Speaking Families Using a Social Determinants Of Health (SDH) Screener at a Pediatric Clinic in New York City

Poster Number: 85
Publication Number: 85.210

Jennifer Acevedo Sanchez, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States; Lauren Zajac, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States; Paige Cloonan, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States; Sonia Khurana, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States; Arthi Vickneswaramoorthy, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Whitby, ON, Canada; Eve A. Spear, Barnard College, Brookline, MA, United States; Eden Alin, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Glen Cove, NY, United States; Jenna Wisch, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, NY, United States; Maya Venkatraman, Columbia University, NYC, NY, United States; Leora Mogilner, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States

Background: Unmet social needs secondary to adverse social and environmental conditions are associated with poorer health outcomes. Screening for and addressing families’ needs with an SDH screener that adapts to the diverse needs of the target population has shown to be a valuable intervention to improve children’s health.

Objective: To describe unmet social needs identified with a phone SDH screener in English and Spanish-speaking families at a NYC pediatric clinic.

Design/Methods: From November 2020-December 2021 an SDH screening tool assessing for 12 unmet needs was administered to caregivers by phone one week before their appointments. We collected demographic information and insurance status was obtained from the electronic medical record. Those with unmet needs were offered community resources and referrals. Responses were examined using descriptive statistics. Categorical variables were compared with Chi-square and continuous variables were compared with Mann Whitney U test to explore differences between English and Spanish-speaking families.

Results: We called 1,568 families and 997 (49%) answered the phone. 794 (80%) agreed to participate, and 97% of those completed the full screener. 707 (91%) of screened parents spoke English and 64 (9%) Spanish. 698 (91%) of parents had children with public insurance and 68 (9%) with private insurance; 69% received SNAP and/or WIC benefits. 553 (71%) of children were younger than 5 years-old. 238 (59%) of parents identified their children as Hispanic, 161 (40%) Non-Hispanic, and 372 (48%) did not report ethnicity; further, 26 (4%) identified their children as White and 270 (46%) as Black. The average number of unmet needs was 1.4 (1.4), with 3.1 (1.6) for Spanish-speakers and 1.3 (1.4) for English-speakers (p < 0.001). For Spanish-speakers, the top unmet needs identified were: English proficiency/education (64%), food insecurity (59%), and home environmental issues (53%). For English-speakers, the top unmet needs were: home environmental issues (25%), food insecurity (21%), and childcare 139 (20%) (Table 2). 95% of Spanish-speaking parents accepted a referral compared to 78% of English-speakers (p < 0.001).Conclusion(s):  A phone-based SDH screener successfully identified a range of unmet social needs in our population. Spanish-speaking caregivers reported significantly more needs and were more likely to accept community resources. Efforts to expand screenings for Spanish-speaking families with appropriate language-based resources may be a valuable intervention in outpatient settings in NYC.
Telephone SDH screener questionnaireAbbreviations: WIC = Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children; SNAP = Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Demographic summary of caregivers that completed a social determinants of health (SDH) screener in East Harlem, NYC from December 2020 to November 2021 (n=771)Chi-square was performed to explore differences in demographic categories between English and Spanish-speaking families.
Abbreviations: WIC = Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children; SNAP = Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).