ABSTRACT
Healthcare providers face certain barriers to fully assessing different social needs and referring patients to community resources appropriately, perpetuating healthcare disparities. The purpose of this quality improvement study was to create an intervention to increase assessment of social determinants of health (SDOH) and referrals. A module incorporating concepts of SDOH was developed and delivered during two training sessions. This module focused on: Partnership, Acceptance, Compassion, and Evocation (PACE). It was found that the public health providers at a local public health center were able to appropriately refer 55% of all new and annual patients screened with specific SDOH needs after the educational module was implemented. An overall increase in SDOH understanding and referrals was also found. SDOH training and ongoing social needs screenings could be incorporated in public health centers to decrease healthcare inequities present among minorities and individuals who live in poverty.
