Social Determinants of Health Screening Tools Used with Immigrant Populations: A Scoping Review

Social determinants of health (SDOH) are increasingly recognized as major contributors to health outcomes. Beyond general social challenges, immigrants face additional barriers related to language, immigration status, legal concerns, discrimination, and exclusionary policies. Despite growing interest in SDOH screening, little is known about how existing screening instruments address immigrant-specific factors. Searches of Web of Science, PubMed, CINAHL, and PsychINFO identified peer-reviewed articles published between 2015 and 2025. Eligible studies included original research articles focused on immigrant populations and the use of an SDOH screening tool. Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts, and full texts. Data were extracted on screening tool characteristics, SDOH domains assessed, immigrant-specific indicators, language availability, study setting, and tool validation status. The final search yielded 1,155 articles. Eight studies met full inclusion criteria, describing nine screening tools or variants, including adaptations of the Health Leads Social Needs Screening Toolkit, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Accountable Health Communities screening tool, and the Protocol for Responding to and Assessing Patients’ Assets, Risks, and Experiences. Most studies occurred in urban primary care settings and primarily served Hispanic/Latinx immigrant populations. Core SDOH domains were well-represented across all tools. While all studies included at least one immigrant-specific measure, these were generally limited to language preference, nativity, legal concerns, and migrant worker status. No adapted or newly developed tool demonstrated formal psychometric validation. Current SDOH screening tools may fail to capture the broader structural factors that shape immigrant health, including immigration-related policies, legal precarity, discrimination, and fear. Significant gaps remain in culturally responsive, psychometrically validated instruments developed with and for immigrant communities.