Development and evaluation of a pharmacy-based tool to assess patient social determinants of health.

BACKGROUND: Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) are well-recognized factors that impact health. Efforts are underway across healthcare settings to better assess health needs related to SDOH, but a tool to assess these factors in a pharmacy setting especially as they relate to medication use does not heretofore exist. OBJECTIVES: This research describes the development and evaluation of SDOHRx, a pharmacy-specific SDOH screening tool. MethodsSDOHRx Screening Tool data was collected and evaluated from 37 community pharmacies as part of the Project IMPACT: Cardiovascular Health+ study protocol. Inclusion criteria for the study were: non-pregnant adults without implanted electronic devices presenting to a pharmacist for usual and customary care and able to provide informed consent. 4,186 responses were collected and 1,697 were utilized for analysis. The scored items of the assessment tool were analyzed using a KR20 Reliability Analysis and Exploratory Factor Analysis. RESULTS: Findings from the KR20 Reliability Analysis and Exploratory Factor Analysis yielded a high degree of internal consistency (KR20=0.87) and a strong primary factor (eigenvalue=10.44), respectively. DISCUSSION: Interpretation of the results are discussed, as well as the limitations to the generalizability and interpretability of the assessment due to limited validity evidence thus far. CONCLUSION: The SDOHRx Screening Tool is a 15-item instrument that is developed for use by pharmacists and pharmacy team members in identifying and addressing the health-related needs of their patients.