Social Determinants of Health: An Overview for the Primary Care Provider

If we are to achieve the Healthy People 2030s goal of, creating social, physical, and economic environments that promote attaining the full potential for health and well-being for all, then we must work together toward intervening and improving the effects of suboptimal SDoH. There are roles for many players in this regard: public health workers, city planners, businesses, policy makers, politicians, and PCPs. Although it is clear that community and societal-level interventions are vital and clearly outside of the purview of clinicians, it is also clear that a PCP led team-based approach to screening and intervention is critical. Hopefully, this article has provided useful insights and a clearer perspective from which PCPs, researchers, community stakeholders, and lawmakers will be able to create more informed interventions, research projects, and policy in the future.

Automated summary

To achieve the goals of Healthy People 2030, it is crucial for us to work together in intervening and improving the effects of suboptimal social determinants of health. Various stakeholders, including public health workers, city planners, businesses, policy makers, politicians, and primary care providers, play important roles in this process. While community and societal-level interventions are essential and beyond the scope of clinicians, a team-based approach led by primary care providers for screening and intervention is also critical.