Physicians have long known how social determinants, or drivers, of health impact their patients’ lives, fuel disparities, increase care costs, and ultimately influence physicians’ quality outcomes and payment. They also have a sizable impact on physicians’ mental health, according to part one of The Physicians Foundation’s 2022 Survey of America’s Physicians.
More than eight in 10 physician respondents believe addressing patients’ social determinants of health contributes to physician burnout. And nearly 70% report managing patients’ social determinants of health has a major impact on physician mental health and well-being.
Without adequate time and resources to address these social risk factors, physicians may feel hopeless, says Robert Seligson, CEO of The Physicians Foundation.
“These doctors love their patients, and they want their patients to get better,” he recently told Texas Medicine for an upcoming article in the May issue. “If these issues aren’t addressed, their patients don’t improve … and that puts stress on doctors.”
In other key findings from the survey:
- 80% believe the U.S. cannot improve health outcomes or reduce health care costs without addressing social determinants of health.
- 77% of respondents indicated many or all of their patients’ health outcomes are affected by social determinants of health.
- Financial instability (34%) and transportation problems (24%) are the top two social determinants of health experienced by respondents’ patients. Limited time during patient visits (89%) and insufficient staffing to direct patients to community resources (84%) are the two biggest challenges respondents identified when addressing social determinants of health.
The survey also identified several policy steps to help improve patient outcomes and health care cost effectiveness. For instance, 86% support physician payments for addressing social determinants of health, and 84% support incentivizing payers to invest in community resources that help physicians do this work.
For more than a decade, The Physicians Foundation has advocated for such policies to be implemented, with physicians leading the charge.
This hard work paid off in December 2021, when The Physicians Foundation submitted the first-ever social determinants of health screening quality measures to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), with the support of the Texas Medical Association and others in organized medicine.
CMS is expected to propose the two measures for use in federal payment programs as part of its proposed 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, due out this summer.
More information about the results of the 2022 Survey of America’s Physicians can be found on The Physicians Foundation website. And watch for the May issue of Texas Medicine for more coverage of these developments.
Emma Freer
Associate Editor
(512) 370-1383