How can healthcare providers effectively address social determinants of health, such as social isolation, in the management of mental health disorders?

 How can healthcare providers effectively address social determinants of health, such as social isolation, in the management of mental health disorders?

To ensure effective treatment, it is important for healthcare providers to address social determinants of health in order to remove any barriers to treatment. Therefore, providers must first screen patients for social determinants of health when they visit for healthcare. During interviewing, providers can ask questions like "Do you have medical insurance?" of "Do you have access to healthcare?" Such questions can pinpoint whether there are any financial constraints to seeking healthcare. When dealing with mental health issues, like the AVPD case for the presented patient, the provider can ask the patient, "Do you have family support?" Such questions would enable the provider to provide necessary psychoeducation to patients regarding the impact of social determinants of health on their mental well-being. Given the shyness and avoidance nature of patients with AVPD, providers can result to telehealth and remote support. It is well documented that using telehealth services can help overcome barriers associated to accessing care (Butkus et al., 2020); such may be useful for patients experiencing social isolation.

References

Butkus, R., Rapp, K., Cooney, T. G., Engel, L. S., & Health and Public Policy Committee of the American College of Physicians*. (2020). Envisioning a better US health care system for all: reducing barriers to care and addressing social determinants of health. Annals of internal medicine, 172(2_Supplement), S50-S59. https://doi.org/10.7326/M19-2410