Beyond the Bedside: Acute Care Providers' Awareness of Food Insecurity and Available Resources

To examine health care providers' knowledge, perceptions, and practices regarding food insecurity and federal nutrition assistance programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), known as CalFresh in California, in acute care settings.

Using a descriptive qualitative design, semistructured interviews were conducted with 13 purposively sampled health care providers, including nurses, dietitians, and clinical social workers. The data were analyzed using conventional content analysis to identify key themes and insights into the providers' perspectives and experiences.

Themes included the following: (1) necessity of SNAP/CalFresh application assistance in hospital; (2) health care providers barriers to addressing food insecurity and providing food assistance resource referrals, including limited knowledge of food assistance programs, unclear roles, inconsistent screening and referral practices, and lack of institutional guidance; and (3) patient barriers to using food assistance resources including difficult application processes, stigma, transportation, technology, and social support challenges.

Identified barriers spanned multiple levels of the Social Ecological Model, highlighting systemic gaps in food insecurity response in the acute care setting. Health care provider education, clearer protocols, defined provider roles, and integration of SNAP/CalFresh application assistance within acute care settings, including partnerships with community-based organizations, could ease patient burdens, provide updated food resource information, and assist with applications and renewals.