Background: Previous work at our major academic medical center found that compared to White patients, Black and Latinx patients with a primary diagnosis of congestive heart failure (CHF) were significantly less likely to be admitted to our specialized cardiology service rather than our general medicine service (GMS). This work additionally found that CHF patients admitted [...]

Background: More than 71,000 people are non-fatally injured by firearms annually in the US and forced to deal with the aftermath and sequela of surviving a gunshot wound (GSW). The social determinants of health (SDOH) needs in this vulnerable population are poorly understood, particularly at the time of discharge. Following up with healthcare providers after [...]

Background: Social determinants of health (SDOH) are thought to account for up to half of modifiable outcomes related to health. Children from minority groups and/or lower socioeconomic backgrounds are at higher risk for hospitalization. Efforts have been made to screen for social risk factors in the outpatient setting. However, few studies describe inpatient SDOH screening [...]

Background: Social determinants of health (SDH) are living and work conditions which affect health and functioning. [1] Unmet social needs may contribute to increased medical utilization and worse health outcomes. For example, patients with sickle cell who report financial strain have more admissions and readmissions. [2] Adults with cancer and housing insecurity are more likely [...]

Background: Functional health literacy includes the ability to receive information, comprehend its meaning, and put it into action. Patients’ health literacy level has been found to be a stronger correlate of health status than education level and other sociodemographic variables. Individuals with below basic/basic health literacy utilize the healthcare system more often and spend more [...]

Background: As members of the patient experience committee, we aimed to identify areas of opportunity to improve the HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) scores. By analyzing the data through the utilization of our analytics tool provided by the patient and customer experience department, we noticed trends in the regional demographics in [...]

Background: Health-related social needs (HRSN) exacerbate poor health in patients with chronic medical conditions. The population of frequently hospitalized patients is heterogeneous, but many have unmet health related social needs. Multidisciplinary programs for this population emphasize longitudinal patient-provider relationships and intensive case management. Studies of these interventions have failed to demonstrate improved readmissions outcomes but [...]

Background: Social determinants of health (SDoH) are the conditions in which people are born, work, and live that affect about 80% of their health outcomes (1,2). Gaps in addressing SDoH contribute to health disparities and inequities which disproportionately harm racial and ethnic minorities (3). Addressing SDoH needs with interventions such as housing, nutritional, or income [...]

Background: Historically, there has been a significant disparity in the number of patient experience Press Ganey survey responses between English-speaking patients and those who speak other languages. In 2022, our organization observed a remarkably low inpatient Press Ganey survey response rate for the Spanish-speaking patient population, standing at 5.7%. Out of 2,303 surveys sent, only [...]

Background: The period following hospital discharge is a vulnerable time for patients when increased self-care requirements are common. Low levels of health literacy and social support are thought to contribute to poor post-discharge outcomes. However, little research has specifically examined the role of health literacy alone or in combination with social support in predicting readmission [...]