Where we live, learn, work and play can have a greater impact on how long and how well we live than medical care.
The Family Information & Navigation Desk (FIND) Program at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland was born out of the desire by Children’s primary care staff to move beyond a focus on biomedical and risk-behavior explanations of health to understand the root causes of health inequities and to provide a preventive approach to population health.
About the Family Information & Navigation Desk (FIND)
Aware that extensive research shows that social factors such as food insecurity and housing instability can make a big difference in people's physical and mental health, FIND was launched with the goal of minimizing the social and environmental factors that have a negative effect on the health of our patients and their families.
The overarching goal of FIND is to routinely screen for basic social needs and thereafter, connect families to community resources. Additionally, FIND aims to train college students, community members, and professionals in the social determinants of health (SODH) approach to medical care.
Located at Children's Primary Care Clinic and Emergency Department, trained staff and volunteers screen families for social issues affecting their health, including tobacco, as well as for basic social needs such as access to nutrition, housing, and utilities.
The Bay Area Regional Help Desk Consortium, which is dedicated to implementing this kind of social support within healthcare settings, is made up of a group of doctors, social workers, lawyers, and officials affiliated with:
- Children's Hospital
- Highland Hospital
- San Francisco General Hospital
- Government Agencies
- Academic Institutions
The consortium cites one national survey showing that four out of five physicians say unmet social needs directly lead to poorer health—and most are not confident in their capacity to address these needs.