Unmet Social Needs Study

Completed · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Cardiovascular Disease, Hypertension, Diabetes Mellitus, Hyperlipidemia

In brief

The impacts of unmet social needs, such as homelessness, inconsistent access to food, and exposure to violence on health are well-established, especially for cardiovascular disease. A limited but growing body of evidence suggests that screening for and addressing these needs - also referred as social determinants of health -- in clinic settings helps to connect patients to resources to address unmet needs and has the potential to improve health outcomes. Veterans carry a high burden of unmet needs. At present, VA systematically screens for only two unmet needs; homelessness and food insecurity. The investigators propose to assess the efficacy of systematically screening Veterans for nine unmet needs (i.e., housing, food insecurity, utility insecurity, transportation, legal problems, employment, safety, stress, and social isolation), and compare the effect of referral mechanisms of varying intensity on Veterans' connection to resources, reduction of unmet needs, treatment adherence, reduced preventable hospitalizations, and clinical outcomes.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT04977583

Run by

VA Office of Research and Development

People needed

479

Starts

2022-04-29

Expected to finish

2023-12-15

Last updated by the study team

2025-04-30

Who can join

Age: any. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Veterans enrolled in one of three VA medical centers:
• 1) VA Boston Healthcare System
• 2) Corporal Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center (Philadelphia)
• 2) Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center (Charleston)
• Veterans with, or at risk for, cardiovascular disease (CVD) who had at least 1 PC visit in the prior year
• CVD patients are defined as those with International Classification of Disease 10 (ICD10) diagnoses indicating:
• coronary artery disease
• cerebrovascular disease
• peripheral artery disease
• Patients at-risk for CVD are defined as having diagnoses of hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM), or hyperlipidemia

You may not qualify if…

• Impaired decision-making
• Illiterate or have limited or no English proficiency

Where it is running

• VA Boston Healthcare System Jamaica Plain Campus, Jamaica Plain, MA — Boston, Massachusetts, United States
• Corporal Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
• Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center, Charleston, SC — Charleston, South Carolina, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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