An Integrative Review of Social Determinants of Health Assessment and Screening Tools Used in Pediatrics.
Jennifer Morone
PMID 28811057WHAT IT FOUND
Most pediatric social needs screening tools focused on economic stability and often did not cover all domains.
Many had no validation. Use them cautiously and check what they actually ask.
Key findings
01Thirteen eligible pediatric social determinants of health screening studies were reviewed, and none asked about every subcomponent of the five domains.
02Economic stability was the most comprehensively assessed domain, and 85% of studies covered three or more domains.
0362% of studies used no validation methods for their screening tools.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only English-language, U.S. pediatric studies from three databases were included. Relevant tools described with other terms or used elsewhere may have been missed. One person screened articles, read full texts and extracted data. Appraisal was not double-checked. The review did not test whether screening improves child or family health outcomes. It described tool coverage and validation only. Existing tools varied widely in format and content. Direct comparison was difficult. No tool covered every subcomponent of all five domains.
The easy way to misread this
Do not treat this review as proof that social needs screening improves pediatric health. It describes tools and their coverage, not patient outcomes from using them.