Facilitating income support attachment among socially marginalized patients at an inner city acute care hospital

Hospital visits often fail to address the social needs of inner city patients with substance use disorders (SUDs), including their income support needs. Integrating substance use services with income supports in the hospital may be an effective means to meeting patient needs and improving outcomes for marginalized populations with SUDs. However, no research has examined the provision of direct access to income support within acute care for this patient population.

To address this gap, we are studying the impact of the ARCH team on patients’ access to social services, especially income support. We are examining secondary self-report data linked with administrative health and income support data from acute care patients reporting social marginalization and SUDs. Our specific objectives are to:

1.     Characterize baseline differences between patients receiving versus not receiving income support upon hospital admission

2.     Determine whether exposure to social service access in acute care increases attachment to income support

Our findings will help guide the integration of income support interventions into the acute care setting, and may contribute to social service planning more broadly.  

Study Leads: Elaine Hyshka (principal investigator) and Karine Lavergne (research analyst)

Funding Support: Alberta Innovates Health Solutions (AIHS) Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Health System (PRIHS), and The Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation (RAHF)

Status: Ongoing