Social Determinants and Health Service Use Among Racial and Ethnic Minorities: Findings From a Community Sample

Duy D. Nguyen MSWPhDa*, Kiu H. Ho MSWa & James Herbert Williams MSWMPAPhDb a Silver School of Social Work , New York University , New York, New York, USA b Graduate School of Social Work , University of Denver , Denver, Colorado, USA * New York University, 1 Washington Square North, New York, NY, 10003 E-mail: duy.nguyen@nyu.edu Multiple models conceptualizing the relationship between social determinants and health exist, but little research has examined the relationship between social determinants and health service use. Using previously collected survey data from racial and linguistic minorities from high-crime communities in a Midwestern urban area, this study uses the Commission on Social Determinants of Health framework to test the structural and intermediary determinants of health service use. The results indicate that perceived discrimination and neighborhood cohesion increase the likelihood of a person using health services. Implications for social work practice, advocacy, and research to address intermediary social determinants are discussed.