Socioeconomic and psychosocial needs in pediatric infectious diseases outpatient settings

Pediatric infectious disease (ID) outpatient settings do not routinely screen for household-level psychosocial needs. We assessed the prevalence of health-related social needs (HRSNs), caregiver adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and neighborhood-level socioeconomic deprivation index (SDI) scores in pediatric ID outpatient settings. We approached English- and Spanish-speaking caregivers of pediatric ID outpatients to complete HRSN and ACE paper questionnaires from August 2023 to August 2024. The SDI scores were identified using geocoded addresses (higher scores indicating more deprivation). We surveyed 306 caregivers regarding HRSNs and ACEs. Caregivers reported anxiety (70%), depression (20%), and food insecurity (10%), with 20% reporting ≥4 ACEs. Median SDI scores were higher for children with reported food insecurity (0.61) compared to those without food insecurity (0.28, P < .001). In addition to general pediatricians, ID clinicians could play a critical role in addressing challenges in ways that could decrease inequities, approaches aided by HRSN and ACE screening and SDI risk stratification.