Food insecurity screening and immediate access to prepackaged groceries in the pediatric emergency department: A pilot study

OBJECTIVE: Food insecurity (FI) is prevalent in many urban settings across the United States. Many vulnerable families who lack access to a medical home utilize the pediatric emergency department (PED), making the PED a critical access point to address FI. We aimed to understand caregivers' experiences in receiving prepackaged groceries and community resources within a PED. 

METHODS: In this pilot initiative, caregivers who screened positive for FI in the PED received prepackaged groceries for their household and a list of community resources. Caregivers were interviewed to understand their experience in receiving food resources in the PED. Phone interviews were conducted until code saturation was reached. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and coded. Content analysis generated themes describing the impact of the intervention. This study was conducted in a tertiary care PED in an urban setting between October 2018 and June 2019. Participants included English-speaking caregivers of children younger than 18 years. 

RESULTS: Ninety-six households received groceries and a list of community food resources. Four themes emerged from interviewing 23 caregivers: (1) immediate food relief was helpful when their child was acutely ill, (2) caregivers generally accepted the food from the prepackaged bags, (3) community resources were difficult to access, and (4) FI households who did not use community resources ascribed this to a lack of need for urgent food. 

CONCLUSIONS: Families perceived benefits of being provided groceries during emergency department visits since there are barriers to accessing community resources.