"More than just giving them a piece of paper": Interviews with Primary Care on Social Needs Referrals to Community-Based Organizations

doi:10.1007/s11606-022-07531-3

. 2022 Dec;37(16):4160-4167.

doi: 10.1007/s11606-022-07531-3. Epub 2022 Apr 14.

"More than just giving them a piece of paper": Interviews with Primary Care on Social Needs Referrals to Community-Based Organizations

Laura B Beidler¹, Na'amah Razon^{2

3}, Hannah Lang⁴, Taressa K Fraze^{5

6

7}

Affiliations

¹ The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, USA.
² Family and Community Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, USA.
³ Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, USA.
⁴ Dartmouth College, Hanover, USA.
⁵ Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, USA. Taressa.Fraze@ucsf.edu.
⁶ Family and Community Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, 3333 California Street, Suite 465, San Francisco, CA, 94118, USA. Taressa.Fraze@ucsf.edu.
⁷ Healthforce Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, USA. Taressa.Fraze@ucsf.edu.

PMID: 35426010
PMCID: PMC9708990
DOI: 10.1007/s11606-022-07531-3

"More than just giving them a piece of paper": Interviews with Primary Care on Social Needs Referrals to Community-Based Organizations

Laura B Beidler et al. J Gen Intern Med. 2022 Dec.

. 2022 Dec;37(16):4160-4167.

doi: 10.1007/s11606-022-07531-3. Epub 2022 Apr 14.

Authors

Laura B Beidler¹, Na'amah Razon^{2

3}, Hannah Lang⁴, Taressa K Fraze^{5

6

7}

Affiliations

¹ The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, USA.
² Family and Community Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, USA.
³ Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, USA.
⁴ Dartmouth College, Hanover, USA.
⁵ Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, USA. Taressa.Fraze@ucsf.edu.
⁶ Family and Community Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, 3333 California Street, Suite 465, San Francisco, CA, 94118, USA. Taressa.Fraze@ucsf.edu.
⁷ Healthforce Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, USA. Taressa.Fraze@ucsf.edu.

PMID: 35426010
PMCID: PMC9708990
DOI: 10.1007/s11606-022-07531-3

Abstract

Background: Primary care practices are responding to calls to incorporate patients' social risk factors, such as housing, food, and economic insecurity, into clinical care. Healthcare likely relies on the expertise and resources of community-based organizations to improve patients' social conditions, yet little is known about the referral process.

Objective: To characterize referrals to community-based organizations by primary care practices.

Design: Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with healthcare administrators responsible for social care efforts in their organization.

Participants: Administrators at 50 diverse US healthcare organizations with efforts to address patients' social risks.

Main measures: Approaches used in primary care to implement social needs referral to community-based organizations.

Results: Interviewed administrators reported that social needs referrals were an essential element in their social care activities. Administrators described the ideal referral programs as placing limited burden on care teams, providing patients with customized referrals, and facilitating closed-loop referrals. We identified three key challenges organizations experience when trying to implement the ideal referrals program: (1) developing and maintaining resources lists; (2) aligning referrals with patient needs; and (3) measuring the efficacy of referrals. Collectively, these challenges led to organizations relying on staff to manually develop and update resource lists and, in most cases, provide patients with generic referrals. Administrators not only hoped that referral platforms may help overcome some of these barriers, but also reported implementation challenges with platforms including inconsistent buy-in and use across staff; integration with electronic health records; management and prioritization of resources; and alignment with other organizations in their market.

Conclusion and relevance: Referrals to community-based organizations were used in primary care to improve patients' social conditions, but despite strong motivations, interviewees reported challenges providing tailored and up-to-date information to patients.

Keywords: clinicians; primary care; referrals; social determinants of health; social risks.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they do not have a conflict of interest.

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References

1. Andermann A. Screening for social determinants of health in clinical care: moving from the margins to the mainstream. Public Health Rev. 2018;39:19. doi: 10.1186/s40985-018-0094-7. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Berkowitz SA, Hulberg AC, Hong C, et al. Addressing basic resource needs to improve primary care quality: a community collaboration programme. BMJ Qual Saf. 2016;25(3):164–172. doi: 10.1136/bmjqs-2015-004521. - DOI - PubMed
1. Byhoff E, Freund KM, Garg A. Accelerating the implementation of social determinants of health interventions in internal medicine. J Gen Intern Med. 2018;33(2):223–225. doi: 10.1007/s11606-017-4230-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. De Marchis EH, Torres JM, Benesch T, et al. Interventions addressing food insecurity in health care settings: A systematic review. Ann Fam Med. 2019;17(5):436–447. doi: 10.1370/afm.2412. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Doty MM, Tikkanen R, Shah A, Schneider EC. Primary care physicians’ role in coordinating medical and health-related social needs in eleven countries. Health Aff (Millwood). 2019;39(1):115–123. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2019.01088. - DOI - PubMed

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[1] Andermann A. Screening for social determinants of health in clinical care: moving from the margins to the mainstream. Public Health Rev. 2018;39:19. doi: 10.1186/s40985-018-0094-7. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[2] Andermann A. Screening for social determinants of health in clinical care: moving from the margins to the mainstream. Public Health Rev. 2018;39:19. doi: 10.1186/s40985-018-0094-7. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[3] Berkowitz SA, Hulberg AC, Hong C, et al. Addressing basic resource needs to improve primary care quality: a community collaboration programme. BMJ Qual Saf. 2016;25(3):164–172. doi: 10.1136/bmjqs-2015-004521. - DOI - PubMed

[4] Berkowitz SA, Hulberg AC, Hong C, et al. Addressing basic resource needs to improve primary care quality: a community collaboration programme. BMJ Qual Saf. 2016;25(3):164–172. doi: 10.1136/bmjqs-2015-004521. - DOI - PubMed

[5] Byhoff E, Freund KM, Garg A. Accelerating the implementation of social determinants of health interventions in internal medicine. J Gen Intern Med. 2018;33(2):223–225. doi: 10.1007/s11606-017-4230-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[6] Byhoff E, Freund KM, Garg A. Accelerating the implementation of social determinants of health interventions in internal medicine. J Gen Intern Med. 2018;33(2):223–225. doi: 10.1007/s11606-017-4230-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[7] De Marchis EH, Torres JM, Benesch T, et al. Interventions addressing food insecurity in health care settings: A systematic review. Ann Fam Med. 2019;17(5):436–447. doi: 10.1370/afm.2412. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[8] De Marchis EH, Torres JM, Benesch T, et al. Interventions addressing food insecurity in health care settings: A systematic review. Ann Fam Med. 2019;17(5):436–447. doi: 10.1370/afm.2412. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[9] Doty MM, Tikkanen R, Shah A, Schneider EC. Primary care physicians’ role in coordinating medical and health-related social needs in eleven countries. Health Aff (Millwood). 2019;39(1):115–123. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2019.01088. - DOI - PubMed

[10] Doty MM, Tikkanen R, Shah A, Schneider EC. Primary care physicians’ role in coordinating medical and health-related social needs in eleven countries. Health Aff (Millwood). 2019;39(1):115–123. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2019.01088. - DOI - PubMed

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"More than just giving them a piece of paper": Interviews with Primary Care on Social Needs Referrals to Community-Based Organizations

Affiliations

"More than just giving them a piece of paper": Interviews with Primary Care on Social Needs Referrals to Community-Based Organizations

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

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