ID-5184 Wonca Abstracts supplement A-K 13-10-23 - Flipbook - Page 253
WONCA 2023 Supplement 1: WONCA 2023 abstracts (A–K)
A
B
C
D
Addressing the social determinants of health in
primary care
Dr Archna Gupta1,2, Gary Bloch1,2, Meera Mehta2, Dr Sunil Abraham3, Ana Maria Rached4,
Katherine Rouleau1,2
1
Unity Health Toronto, 2University of Toronto, 3Christian Medical College Vellore,
Federal University of Sao Paulo
E
4
F
Aim
To explore how the social determinants of health can be addressed in primary care.
G
Background
Since the reports of the WHO Commission on the Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) and
the Second Conference on Primary Health Care in Astana, there have been increasing efforts to
address the SDOH in primary care. While healthcare providers have long recognised that the social
circumstances in which people live are the most powerful determinants of health, historically, many
have felt powerless to directly mitigate those risks. Recently, a growing number of primary care
providers and teams have sought to address this situation by developing approaches to addressing
the social risks to patients’ health. A summary of such actions globally, including a description of the
interventions, settings, target population and impact, is not currently available. A scoping review of
social interventions in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) was conducted.
H
I
J
K
Methods
The databases searched included MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and Global Index Medicus. Searches
were limited to English, French, Spanish and Portuguese. This resulted in 1506 citations initially.
Included articles described an intervention related to a single or multiple SDOH (income and social
protection, education, unemployment and job insecurity, working conditions, food security, housing
and basic amenities, early childhood development, social inclusion and non-discrimination, structural
conflict, access to affordable health services) which was implemented in the primary care setting in an
LMIC. Forty-four papers were included in the final analysis.
Results
Findings highlight specific interventions or programs, including community health workers with
a particular mandate to assess and address social needs, primary care-linked cash transfer and
microfinance programs and collecting and acting on sociodemographic data at the individual and the
community level.
Conclusion
Findings emphasise the innovative and powerful ways primary care practitioners and teams globally
are working to address the SDOH in primary care settings.
251