Screening and social prescribing in healthcare and social services to address housing issues among children and families: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVES: Housing is a social determinant of health that impacts the health and well-being of children and families. Screening and referral to address social determinants of health in clinical and social service settings has been proposed to support families with housing problems. This study aims to identify housing screening questions asked of families in healthcare and social services, determine validated screening tools and extract information about recommendations for action after screening for housing issues. METHODS: The electronic databases MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Ovid Emcare, Scopus and CINAHL were searched from 2009 to 2021. Inclusion criteria were peer-reviewed literature that included questions about housing being asked of children or young people aged 0-18 years and their families accessing any healthcare or social service. We extracted data on the housing questions asked, source of housing questions, validity and descriptions of actions to address housing issues. RESULTS: Forty-nine peer-reviewed papers met the inclusion criteria. The housing questions in social screening tools vary widely. There are no standard housing-related questions that clinical and social service providers ask families. Fourteen screening tools were validated. An action was embedded as part of social screening activities in 27 of 42 studies. Actions for identified housing problems included provision of a community-based or clinic-based resource guide, and social prescribing included referral to a social worker, care coordinator or care navigation service, community health worker, social service agency, referral to a housing and child welfare demonstration project or provided intensive case management and wraparound services. CONCLUSION: This review provides a catalogue of housing questions that can be asked of families in the clinical and/or social service setting, and potential subsequent actions.

Body Mapping in a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Program: Eliciting New Identity and Experience.

Arts-based approaches have not been widely used in the drug and alcohol treatment sector. In this study, we examined the utility of the arts-based method of Body Mapping in an Australian residential treatment centre. Two workshops were held to explore young people's strengths and support networks in order to improve understandings of young people's lives, identities and experiences of treatment. Semi-structured follow-up interviews were conducted and triangulated with observational notes and staff interviews. We identified four major themes: engaging through art; removing the mask; revealing strengths; and a sense of achievement. Overall, this study highlighted the value of Body Mapping as an approach to engage with young people, providing rich in-depth data about their lived experiences, including in the alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment context.

Improving health service access and wellbeing of young Aboriginal parents in an urban setting: mixed methods evaluation of an arts-based program.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate an urban art-based community health program (Ngala Nanga Mai; We Dream) that seeks to improve health, education, empowerment and connectedness of Aboriginal parents by describing paediatric health service attendance, maternal educational engagement, participant growth and empowerment, and worker and participant experiences. METHODS: Mixed methods were used. Qualitative data was collected through interviews and focus groups. Demographics, health service use and child health status were extracted from clinical records. Psycho-social empowerment and wellbeing was measured using the Growth and Empowerment Measure (GEM). A Critical Effectiveness Factor framework that measures factors necessary for success, effectiveness and sustainability was used to assess program quality. RESULTS: Between 2009 and 2012, 92 Aboriginal parents participated. A total of 93.5% of regular participants engaged their children at least once with paediatric health services and 27.1% undertook further education. Empowerment scores significantly improved, despite little change in psychological distress. The program operationalised all 10 Critical Effectiveness Factors for youth wellbeing. CONCLUSIONS: Ngala Nanga Mai creates an environment of social connectedness, strengthened parenting, maternal and child wellbeing and empowerment. It supports increased utilisation of health, education and support services, and early detection of treatable child health issues. IMPLICATIONS: Improving the health of Aboriginal children requires new strategies and learning from innovative programs. Solid baseline data, long-term follow-up data and meaningful health outcome data are critical to improving services and health outcomes at the program level. Ultimately, long-term commitment to adequate resourcing is needed in order to deliver broader improvement of child health outcomes.