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In potentially a sign of evolving patient expectations of care, more and more younger people are looking for their providers to ask them about their social needs, or conduct social determinants of health screenings, according to surveying from the University of Michigan.
Using data from the MyVoice National Poll of Youth, the researchers determined that a whopping 81 percent of people ages 14 to 20—mostly Gen Z—want their providers to ask them about social needs that are collectively known as the social determinants of health.
“It seems obvious that addressing social needs, like food and housing, in clinical settings would benefit patients,” Claire Chang, a U-M Medical School student and the study’s first author, said in a press release. “But we actually know very little about whether and how patients would want to receive this kind of assistance.”