An Experiential Resident Module for Understanding Social Determinants of Health at an Academic Safety-Net Hospital.

Introduction: Half of the U.S. population has chronic illness. Many disparities exist in health care for management of chronic disease among poorer individuals, including decreased access to healthy foods, homelessness, and difficulty navigating large hospital systems due to low health literacy. A survey of resident physicians found significant gaps in preparedness to provide cross-cultural care. Education is needed to promote consideration of patients' social and cultural barriers in managing disease and navigating the health care system. This module was created as an introduction to social determinants of health, and highlights disparities in access to healthy food, water, shelter, and medical care in a sample of the residents' own continuity clinic patient panel. Methods: We designed this experiential module to help internal medicine residents at an urban institution better understand how social constructs might hinder patient health. Activities were chosen by learners from a list of options, and carried out in small groups during a half day of protected time. We used reflective writing exercises to elicit resident thoughts about the module. Results: Thirty-nine second-year residents participated in the module. Following the course, 41% of residents submitted reflective statements about their experience. Reflective responses suggest an enhanced appreciation for social determinants of health, a sense of empowerment to advocate for better patient resources, and an appreciation for systems-level factors that play a role in social determinants of health. Discussion: Our results demonstrate that a short, experience-based module can impact resident attitudes about social determinants and improve advocacy around identifying community resources.

Faculty development efforts to promote screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) in an internal medicine faculty-resident practice.

BACKGROUND: Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) is a practical means to address substance misuse in primary care. Important barriers to implementing SBIRT include adequacy of training and provider confidence as well as logistical hurdles and time constraints. A faculty development initiative aimed at increasing SBIRT knowledge and treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs) should lead to increased use of SBIRT by faculty and the residents they teach. This study examined how a faculty development program to promote SBIRT influenced faculty practice and resident teaching. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of faculty exposed to multiple SBIRT educational interventions over a 5-year period in an academic faculty-resident general medicine practice. Participants completed a brief online survey followed by a semistructured interview. Quantitative responses were examined descriptively. Qualitative questions were reviewed to identify key themes. RESULTS: Fifteen of 29 faculty (52%) completed the survey and 13 (45%) completed the interviews regarding faculty development interventions. Faculty thought that SBIRT was an important skill and had confidence in screening for substance use disorders, although confidence in making treatment referrals and prescribing pharmacotherapy were rated lower. Many faculty reported screening more frequently for SUDs after attending faculty development sessions. However, several reported that the training did not improve their SBIRT teaching to residents during clinic precepting sessions. To improve uptake of SBIRT, a majority of faculty recommended electronic health record (EHR) alerts. CONCLUSIONS: SBIRT is a highly valued set of skills, and training may enhance rates of screening for substance misuse. However, participants did not report a substantial change in SBIRT teaching as a result of faculty development. In the future, small, targeted faculty development sessions, potentially involving strategies for using the electronic health record (EHR), may be an effective way to enhance primary care SBIRT skills.