scholarly journals Leveraging data and digital health technologies to assess and impact social determinants of health (SDoH)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly Jean Thomas Craig ◽  
Nicole Fusco ◽  
Thrudur Gunnarsdottir ◽  
Luc Chamberland ◽  
Jane Snowdon ◽  
...  

Objective: Identify how novel datasets and digital health technology, including analytics- and artificial intelligence (AI)-based tools, can be used to assess non-clinical, social determinants of health (SDoH) for population health improvement. Methods: A targeted review with systematic methods was performed on three databases and the grey literature to identify recently published articles (2013-2018) for evidence-based qualitative synthesis. Following single review of titles and abstracts, two independent reviewers assessed eligibility of full-texts using predefined criteria and extracted data into predefined templates. Results: The search yielded 2,714 unique database records of which 65 met inclusion criteria. Most studies were conducted retrospectively in a United States community setting. Identity, behavioral, and economic factors were frequently identified social determinants, due to reliance on administrative data. Three main themes were identified: 1) improve access to data and technology with policy – advance the standardization and interoperability of data, and expand consumer access to digital health technologies; 2) leverage data aggregation – enrich SDoH insights using multiple data sources, and use analytics- and AI-based methods to aggregate data; and 3) use analytics and AI-based methods to assess and address SDoH – retrieve SDoH in unstructured and structured data, and provide contextual care management sights and community-level interventions. Conclusions: If multiple datasets and advanced analytical technologies can be effectively integrated, and consumers have access to and literacy of technology, more SDoH insights can be identified and targeted to improve public health.

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew W. Kreuter ◽  
Tess Thompson ◽  
Amy McQueen ◽  
Rachel Garg

There has been an explosion of interest in addressing social needs in health care settings. Some efforts, such as screening patients for social needs and connecting them to needed social services, are already in widespread practice. These and other major investments from the health care sector hint at the potential for new multisector collaborations to address social determinants of health and individual social needs. This article discusses the rapidly growing body of research describing the links between social needs and health and the impact of social needs interventions on health improvement, utilization, and costs. We also identify gaps in the knowledge base and implementation challenges to be overcome. We conclude that complementary partnerships among the health care, public health, and social services sectors can build on current momentum to strengthen social safety net policies, modernize social services, and reshape resource allocation to address social determinants of health. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Public Health, Volume 42 is April 2021. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keri Durocher ◽  
Gillian Strudwick

Education is one of the key social determinants of health that may be enhanced through technology industry initiatives that support the development of programs for underserviced populations. This poster will provide an overview of identified technology-industry supported educational programs aimed at addressing the social determinants of health. This information can help nursing leaders in the digital health and informatics space identify initiatives that lead to future partnerships.


2020 ◽  
Vol Publish Ahead of Print ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara P. Laymon ◽  
Reena Chudgar ◽  
Tiffany Huang ◽  
Mukti Kulkarni ◽  
Peter L. Holtgrave ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Garnett ◽  
Melissa Northwood ◽  
Justine Ting ◽  
Ruheena Sangrar

BACKGROUND Caregivers provide crucial support to older adults so they can remain safely in their homes as they age. Over time, caregivers’ own health can be negatively impacted by their caregiving role. The social determinants of health, such as gender and socioeconomic status, can influence assuming a caregiving role as well as the impacts of caregiving on the caregiver. While programs exist to support caregivers, uptake of these services does not match the need for services expressed by caregivers. Research suggests that supportive interventions offered via mobile health technologies have the potential to increase caregiver accessibility of supportive services. However, a knowledge gap exists regarding the extent to which the social determinants of health are considered in the design, implementation, and evaluation of mobile health (mHealth) interventions intended to support caregivers of older adults. Furthermore, a comprehensive review of the impact of mHealth interventions in this population does not exist. OBJECTIVE To conduct a systematic review to: (1) determine how health inequities are considered in the design, implementation, and evaluation of mHealth interventions for caregivers of older adults using Cochrane-Equity's PROGRESS-Plus framework; and (2) synthesize evidence of the impacts of caregiver-focused mHealth interventions. METHODS A systematic review was conducted in five databases and articles published between January 2010 and June 2021 were included if they evaluated or explored the impacts of mHealth interventions on the health and wellbeing of informal caregivers of older adults. mHealth interventions were defined as those that caregivers of older adults accessed via mobile or wireless devices. RESULTS A total of 28 articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in the systematic review. The interventions evaluated by the included studies sought to help caregivers make connections with services, facilitate the caregiving process, and promote the caregivers’ health and wellbeing. The PROGRESS-Plus framework factors were mainly considered in the results, discussion, and limitations sections of included studies. Some PROGRESS-Plus factors such as sexual orientation, religion and occupation, received little to no consideration in all phases of intervention design, implementation, or evaluation. Overall, findings of this review suggest that mHealth interventions were positively received by users. Such interventions may have the potential to reduce caregiver burden and positively impact caregivers’ physical and mental health while supporting them in their caregiving role. Study findings highlight the importance of available supports to help facilitate caregivers’ use of mHealth interventions particularly early on as well as the use of appropriate language and text. CONCLUSIONS Successful uptake and spread of mHealth interventions to support caregivers of older adults will depend on creating opportunities for inclusive involvement of a broad range of stakeholders at all stages of design, implementation, and assessment. CLINICALTRIAL PROSPERO CRD42021239584; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=239584


SAGE Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 215824401983892 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Gilson deValpine ◽  
Laura Hunt Trull

A coalition of community members and human service professionals in the rural central Shenandoah Valley of Virginia has performed a community assessment every 5 years. Overreliance on quantitative surveys and hospital-based Community Health Needs Assessments resulted in earlier assessments failing to identify the needs of vulnerable populations. As the coalition approached the time for a new assessment, their priority was to develop a deeper understanding of community health needs and solutions. An extended co-learning process between coalition, community, and local academic representatives resulted in a plan to develop assessment methods and community health improvement resources suited to this goal. The coalition identified methods rooted in the social determinants of health and utilized a community-based participatory research approach to provide underserved residents the opportunity to contribute to health research and decision making and produce an assessment more reflective of their community. Resources including local interpretation and implications of the World Health Organization’s 10 Social Determinants of Health, a Healthy People 2020 community health services profile, and user-friendly access to community-based secondary data sets were developed for intervention planning. All information, resources, and implications were shared at meetings, in public announcements, and at a public forum. All data remain publicly available on the coalition’s website. Previously held beliefs regarding access to care and quality of life were substantiated through this process, enabling the coalition to better align itself with local political entities and to move forward immediately with community health improvement planning.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krista Renee Cockrell ◽  
Buck Reed ◽  
Leigh Wilson

Introduction Australia has had a long-standing challenge in meeting rural and remote healthcare needs. Recently, new expanded paramedic roles have proven successful in addressing healthcare gaps, however, further research is needed to establish cost-effectiveness, sustainability and training. Equally, many established rural paramedics highlight primary healthcare as fundamental to their role. This study explores combining paramedics’ existing assessment scope and unique access to patients in their living environments with the introduction of a tool to measure sense of coherence, general resistance resources and social determinants of health to build patient resiliency to improve outcomes of current and future health events. Through utilising a salutogenic approach which addresses patient wellness and capacity for utilising health resources and knowledge, paramedics can provide a more holistic and patient-centred approach to care and care planning augmenting their existing clinical scope. Methods As this study aimed to establish the feasibility of paramedics undertaking a salutogenic approach to healthcare delivery, seven questions were developed focussing on areas identified as necessary components of feasibility within the paramedic paradigm. A systematic overview of literature was conducted to identify the connection between the salutogenic theory and the provision of pre-hospital care. ResultsFifty-four articles outlined the factors associated with rural living and the aspects that impact on the potential for paramedics in rural communities to undertake a salutogenic approach to healthcare delivery. Additionally, two pieces of grey literature were identified as pertinent to the research. Conclusion It is reasonable to assume that it is a feasible option for rural paramedics to utilise their current skills and unique access to patients in rural and remote settings in a salutogenic approach to healthcare delivery by undertaking assessments of patients’ sense of coherence, general resistance resources and social determinants of health.  


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