P2.083: Addressing Childhood Food Insecurity: An Integrated and Community-Based Approach

Background: Food insecurity affected 17.9% of U.S. families with children in 2023, with rates reaching 39.1% at a Midwest urban pediatric clinic. Food insecurity in children is associated with higher rates of chronic health conditions like asthma, skin allergies, and depression, along with increased Emergency Department visits and school absences. Recognizing these impacts, this clinic partnered with Feeding America and a regional food and healthcare coalition to improve resource access. This study evaluates the implementation and effectiveness of those initiatives.

Methods: Aim 1: Evaluation of Embedded Food Outreach Specialist Model

A Feeding America Outreach Specialist provided weekly in-person assistance to clinic families starting September 2023. By January 2024, the specialist was fully integrated into clinic operations, with standardized tracking to document the number of families engaged, FoodShare enrollments facilitated, and connections to additional resources. Monthly team meetings were conducted to evaluate and refine engagement strategies, and two staff training sessions were held to increase awareness of the specialist’s role and available resources. Patient and staff satisfaction surveys were collected to assess program feasibility and effectiveness.

Aim 2: Community Engagement through Data Chats

A regional food and healthcare coalition facilitated three “Data Chats”, a model of small, focused conversations with community members about their perspectives and interpretations of quantitative data related to food access. Materials were developed and reviewed in partnership with community organizations, and sessions were conducted in both English and Spanish. Reports from these sessions were generated and shared with coalition partners and community organizations to identify and discuss barriers to food access and inform future resource coordination and other areas for improvement.

Results: Aim 1: In 2024, the Feeding America specialist provided 708 resources to patient families (Figure 1). By year’s end, the specialist had assisted 664 families and successfully enrolled 24 in FoodShare, providing an estimated 19,176 annual meals and an economic impact of $115,512. Clinic staff reported strong support for the program, with 81% finding it somewhat or very useful, while 19% remained neutral (N=16). All but one staff member reported that the partnership either decreased or did not impact their workload. Anonymous caregiver feedback demonstrated high satisfaction, with the majority stating that they already had, or planned to, share what they learned with friends and family.

Aim 2: Three Data Chats were conducted in 2024 and 35 individual community members and service providers participated. Insights from the Data Chats were synthesized into reports outlining key themes and community-identified priorities (Table 1).

Conclusion: Initial results suggest that embedding a FoodShare Outreach Specialist within the clinic is both feasible and beneficial to families and staff. Next steps include incorporating community feedback from the Data Chats, expanding to other clinics, and strengthening resource referrals across community-based organizations to maximize impact.