2016 Community Benefit Report CHAI_160088756_2016 Community Benefit Report_FIN - | Page 7

CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL COLORADO More Than a Number Psychosocial Screening Addresses All Aspects of Care ‘Do you have any concerns or problems that make it hard for you to keep your child's health appointments or manage your child's healthcare?’ Questions like these have become part of regular intake processes when families visit Children’s Hospital Colorado’s Child Health Clinic, where there’s an increased focus on screening families for issues like access to healthcare, resource needs like housing or food, financial challenges, safety, relationships and caregiver wellbeing. The Child Health Clinic is one of the largest providers of pediatric primary care for Medicaid patients in Aurora, with children birth to five years old making up the highest patient volume. Here, the First 1,000 Days strategic plan provides a roadmap for the organization to enhance its impact in the early childhood arena through psychosocial screening efforts. “In the Child Health Clinic, we want to understand the circumstances that children and families deal with when they come to us for their well-child and sick care,” says Dr. Ayelet Talmi, pediatric psychologist at Children’s Colorado. When concerns are identified on the screener, a resource team member from Family Navigation, Community Health Liaison, Social Work or integrated behavioral health helps address those needs. “The medical training environment and screening provides a unique opportunity to embed population health management into pediatric training,” says Dr. Burnett. “When families receive access to resources and supports earlier, children receive the best opportunity for true prevention and health promotion.” Dr. Talmi concludes, “When we understand, identify and address concerns and challenges related to environments and experiences, we are able to provide comprehensive healthcare and deliver the necessary services and supports to ensure that children are healthy, strong and thriving.” With this goal in mind and support from the Colorado Health Foundation, Rose Foundation and Caring for Colorado, the Child Health Clinic launched a Psychosocial Screening initiative in 2016. This universal tool assesses all aspects of a family’s needs, environments and experiences, and connects them with appropriate resources. The psychosocial screener asks questions about elements that are known to impact child health and a family’s ability to provide a safe, stable and nurturing environment for their child. “Our clinic sees a diverse population of families from different cultures, languages, immigrant and refugee status as well as families that are largely publicly insured,” says Dr. Bridget Burnett, psychologist at Children’s Colorado. “Our screener is available in 11 languages, meaning families can share issues related to housing or behavioral health that otherwise they may not know they can discuss with their doctor.” 7