While the work of advancing racial health equity happens all year round, the SIREN team rejoices in the occasion that Black History Month provides to collectively celebrate Black excellence, Black thriving, and in line with this year’s theme, Black resistance. We are particularly inspired by the moral imagination of Black abolitionists, past and present, who help point the way toward a vision of freedom, equity, and justice. To learn more about applying abolitionist principles to medicine and social care, join us in rewatching the first plenary from SIREN’s fall meeting and re-reading some key articles.

Register for the upcoming SIREN webinar – How Do Community Resource Referral Platforms Work for Social Service Organizations? Lessons Learned in Trenton, New Jersey

Join Trenton Health Team and SIREN for a webinar on March 1st at 9am Pacific (12pm Eastern) that will share our lessons learned from a two-year study exploring Trenton social service organizations’ perspectives on using a community resource referral platform and testing strategies to increase engagement. Register here.

SIREN is hiring! 

SIREN is seeking a 70% Research Analyst with expertise in designing and carrying out systematic literature reviews and interests in social determinants of health and health equity to maintain and improve the SIREN Evidence and Resource Library and to conduct systematic reviews. We encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply and are open to remote candidates.

Did you miss our webinar on national social care quality metrics?

Catch the recording here. And you may also be interested in a commentary on the topic just published in Health Affairs Forefront.

Journal Articles

Understanding and Addressing Racism in Social Care

The Legacy of Slavery and the Socialization of Black Female Health and Human Services Workforce Members in Addressing Social Determinants of Health
Presumey-Leblanc G, Sandel M
Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities

“Intersections of Social Systems, Race, and Health in America: A Historical Perspective”: A Novel Elective for Medical Students to Increase Anti-Racism Advocacy
Lord V, Larsen A, Rashid R, Palmer W, Mamtani M, Aysola J
Academic Medicine

Opportunities and Challenges in Discussing Racism During Primary Care Visits
Borowsky HM, Willis A, Bullock JL, Fuentes-Afflick E, Palmer NR
Health Services Research

Awareness/Screening

Patient and Patient Caregiver Perspectives on Social Screening: A Review of the Literature
Brown EM, Loomba V, De Marchis E, Aceves B, Molina M, Gottlieb LM
Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine

Patient Perspectives on Technology-Based Approaches to Social Needs Screening
Hare AJ, Honig K, Cronholm PF, Shabazz-McKlaine S, Morgan AU
American Journal of Managed Care

Accuracy of Electronic Health Record Food Insecurity, Housing Instability, and Financial Strain Screening in Adult Primary Care
Harle CA, Wu W, Vest JR
JAMA

Easy to Use and Validated Predictive Models to Identify Beneficiaries Experiencing Homelessness in Medicaid Administrative Data
Pourat N, Yue D, Chen X, Zhou W, O'Masta B
Health Services Research

Assistance/Interventions

Multi-need interventions

Implementing Social Interventions in Primary Care in Canada: A Qualitative Exploration of Lessons Learned From Leaders in the Field
Bloch G & Rozmovits L
PLoS One

Integrating Community Health Workers Within a Pharmacy to Address Health-Related Social Needs
Foster AA, Daly CJ, Leong R, Stoll J, Butler M, Jacobs DM
Journal of the American Pharmacists Association

Evaluating a Social Risk Screening and Referral Program in an Urban Safety-Net Hospital Emergency Department
Loo S, Anderson E, Lin JG, et al.
Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians Open

Spatial Analysis of Community Service Availability in Rural Kentucky, United States
Weverka A, Vundi NL, Clouser JM, Adu AK, Williams MV, Li J
Journal of Public Health Policy

Financial strain

Clinic-Based Financial Coaching and Missed Pediatric Preventive Care: A Randomized Trial
Schickedanz A, Perales L, Holguin M, et al.
Pediatrics

Addressing Financial Barriers to Health Care Among People Who are Low-Income and Insured in New York City, 2014-2017
Frazier TL, Lopez PM, Islam N, et al.
Journal of Community Health

Food interventions

Clinical Outcomes of a Large-Scale, Partnership-Based Regional Food Prescription Program: Results of a Quasi-Experimental Study
Ranjit N, Aiyer JN, Toups JD, et al.
BMC Research Notes

A Community Partnership to Reduce Food Insecurity and Improve Patient-Reported Depression
Byhoff E, Guardado R, Zack RM, Nokes K, Tripodis Y
NEJM Catalyst Innovations in Care Delivery

“I Felt Like I Had Something I Could Do About It”: Pediatric Clinician Experiences With a Food Insecurity-Focused Produce Prescription Program
Johnson S, Fischer L, Gupta S, Lazerov J, Singletary J, Essel K
Clinical Pediatrics

Housing interventions

Women Experiencing Homelessness and Mental Illness in a Housing First Multi-Site Trial: Looking Beyond Housing to Social Outcomes and Well-Being
O'Campo P, Nisenbaum R, Crocker AG, Nicholls T, Eiboff F, Adair CE
PLoS One

Care management

Intensive Care Management for High-Risk Veterans in a Patient-Centered Medical Home - Do Some Veterans Benefit More Than Others?
Swankoski KE, Reddy A, Grembowski D, Chang ET, Wong ES
Healthcare

Observational Analysis of a Generalized, Health Plan-led Community Health Worker Intervention in Medicaid
Gordon AS, Oakes AH, Allender R, Vang L, Hennemann B, Chi WC
Journal of Primary Care & Community Health

Between Health Care and Social Services: Boundary Objects and Cross-Sector Collaboration
Fleming MD, Safaeinili N, Knox M, Hernandez E, Brewster AL
Social Science & Medicine

Advocacy

Community-Academic Advocacy to Improve Shelter Access for Families Experiencing Homelessness
Kanak M, Turley K, Lee LK, Sandel M, Stewart AM
Pediatrics

Reports & Issue Briefs

Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Clinical Decision Support (CDS) Feasibility Brief
Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology

Financing Approaches to Address Social Determinants of Health via Medicaid Managed Care: A 12-State Review
Crumley D, Bank A
Center for Health Care Strategies

Commentaries & Blogs

Financing Health Care System Interventions Addressing Social Risks
Berkowitz SA, Gottlieb LM, Basu S
JAMA Health Forum

New Federal Plan to Reduce Homelessness by 25% by 2025 Includes Health Care as Part of the Solution
Rubin R
JAMA

Produce Prescriptions and a Path Toward Food Equity for Children
Virudachalam S, Kim LS, Seligman H
JAMA Pediatrics

Two NIDDK Grant Announcements:

Pilot Interventions to Integrate Social Care and Medical Care to Improve Health Equity (R01 Clinical Trial Required)
This NIDDK Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) will support pilot and feasibility trials to test interventions that involve screening for and addressing social risks during a health care visit. Letters of intent are due September 19, 2023; applications due October 19, 2023. More details can be found here.

Pilot and Feasibility Trials on the Integration of Social and Medical Care for Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (R01 Clinical Trial Required)
This FOA will support pilot and feasibility trials to test pragmatic interventions that include screening for social risks and referring or providing resource service linkages for social services within the healthcare setting for individuals living with type 1 diabetes. Letters of intent due June 20, 2023; applications due July 20,2023 (with another cycle next year: January 29, 2024/February 29,2024.) Details are here.

Webinars

Systems for Action: Integrating Health and Social Services through a Novel Independent Practice Association – March 8, 2023 | 9am PT/ 12pm ET

New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst: Social Needs and SDOH: Impact on Patients & Communities – March 9, 2023 | 9am PT/ 12pm ET

Systems for Action: Social Bonds as a Pooled Financing Mechanism to Address Social Drivers of Health Equity – April 19, 2023 | 9am PT/ 12pm ET

Meetings & Conferences

American Hospital Association: Accelerating Health Equity Conference – May 16-18, 2023 | Minneapolis, MN   

AcademyHealth 2023 Annual Research Meeting – June 24-27, 2023 | Seattle, WA 

North American Primary Research Group (NAPCRG) Meeting – October 30- November 3, 2023 | San Francisco, CA

The Root Cause Coalition 8th Annual National Summit – December 3-5, 2023 | Kansas City, MO 

HealthBegins: New CMS Guidance on Addressing Social Needs Through Medicaid: Implications for States, Managed Care, and Health Systems – Originally broadcast January 25, 2023

National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership: Using the Medical-Legal Partnership Approach to Help Health Center Patients with Long-COVID – Originally broadcast January 25, 2023

State Health and Value Strategies & SIREN: Exploring the New National Social Care Quality Measures: How Do We Define and Measure Social Needs and High-Quality Social Care? – Originally broadcast January 26, 2023

Systems for Action: Using Whole Person Care to Coordinate Health and Social Services for Medicaid Populations during the COVID-19 Pandemic – Originally broadcast February 8, 2023

Center for Healthcare Strategies & HealthBegins: New CMS Guidance on Addressing Social Needs Through Medicaid: Implications for States, Managed Care, and Health Systems – Originally broadcast February 15, 2023

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