Phone Versus In-Person Navigation of Social Needs and Caregivers’ Desire for Resources in the Pediatric Emergency Department

Abstract

ObjectiveTo determine the association between in-person versus telephone-based contact by a resource navigator and caregivers’ expressed desire for community-based resources to meet social needs in a pediatric emergency department (PED). MethodsThis retrospective observational study used data from the PED in a large, metropolitan, academic children’s hospital. Families were approached by resource navigators and offered community-based resources either in-person or by phone during waiting periods in the PED exam room. We used descriptive statistics and chi-square analysis to summarize demographics and mode of contact, and simple and multivariable logistic regression to estimate the association between desire for resources and mode of contact. ResultsContact was attempted among 4902 caregivers, with 2918 (59.5%) caregivers approached in-person, 1913 (39.0%) approached by phone, and 71 (1.5%) with no mode of contact recorded. Resource navigators successfully reached 2738 (93.8%) caregivers approached in-person and 1432 (74.9%) caregivers approached by phone. Of caregivers successfully reached, 782 (18.8%) desired resources; 526 (19.2%) in-person, and 256 (17.9%) by phone. Caregivers contacted by phone were no more or less likely to desire resources than caregivers contacted in-person in unadjusted (odds ratio (OR) = 0.92, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.78–1.08) and adjusted analyses (OR = 0.92, 95% CI = 0.77–1.09). ConclusionsWithin a large, urban PED, caregivers’ expressed desire for community-based resources was no different whether a caregiver was engaged in-person or by phone. This suggests caregivers may be equally receptive to discussing social needs and community-based resources remotely versus in-person. More work is needed to examine if rates of resource connection differ by mode of contact.