Abstract
Introduction Our objectives were to (a) identify rates of food insecurity among patients seen in a pediatric weight management clinic and (b) test a pilot intervention to address food insecurity in the identified patients. Methods All new patients seen in the clinic were screened for food insecurity and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit status. Families with food insecurity and no SNAP benefits were asked if they wanted SNAP enrollment assistance from a partnering food bank. Those agreeing to assistance were connected to the food bank. Results A total of 116 new patients were evaluated in the clinic during the intervention; 28 (24%) endorsed food insecurity, and 40 (34%) were eligible for SNAP enrollment assistance. Three (8%) of the eligible patients completed the SNAP enrollment process. Discussion Food insecurity in this pediatric weight management clinic was common. However, even when given direct access to SNAP enrollment assistance, only a small minority of patients matriculated into this program.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | e11-e15 |
| Journal | Journal of Pediatric Health Care |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Sep 1 2016 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This work was supported by a grant from Hunger-Free Minnesota , which had no involvement in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, report writing, or the decision to submit work for publication.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Keywords
- Food insecurity
- food assistance
- obesity
