NQF offers ways for hospitals to help patients meet social needs

The National Quality Forum this week released recommendations for health care organizations seeking to help patients access healthy food, safe housing or transportation. While health care teams are well positioned to identify patients’ health-related social needs, they may struggle to address them, which can go beyond the scope of patient encounters in care settings. The report navigates the complexities of how health care organizations can leverage social determinants of health data to improve health outcomes by forming partnerships with local community organizations, leveraging digital platforms and streamlining multidirectional communications. (NQF news release, 3/5/24)