Combined with patient–clinician conversations, social determinants of health (SDOH) information from
standardized screening documented in EHRs may enable social risk-adjusted care, according to a study
published in the Annals of Family Medicine. Researchers evaluated the extent that patients’ SDOH
influence safety-net primary care clinicians’ decisions at the point of care. A total of 38 clinicians
working in 21 clinics completed two short surveys embedded daily in the EHR system for 3 weeks. Clinician
encounters were matched with survey data, along with patient-level variables from the EHR. Conversations
with patients (76%) were the most common sources of information on patients’ SDOH, followed by prior
knowledge (64%) and the EHR (46%). Males and non-English-speaking patients were significantly more likely
to be influenced by SDOH regarding care, as well as those with discrete SDOH screening data recorded in
the EHR. “Study results also identified factors that may cue clinicians to include SDOH information in
point-of-care decision-making,” the study authors wrote. “Future research should explore this topic
further.”
