Research investigating racial disparities in health care and health outcomes is critically important to designing effective interventions to improve health for all. Knowing the demographic characteristics of the study population of interest is a key step in ensuring generalizable…

OBJECTIVE: To determine the association between in-person versus telephone-based contact by a resource navigator and caregivers' expressed desire for community-based resources to meet social needs in a pediatric emergency department (PED). METHODS: This retrospective observational…

PolicyLab responded to a request for public comment from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (PA DHS) on the Section 1115 Medicaid demonstration waiver application: “Bridges to Success: Keystones of Health for Pennsylvania.”  In their response, PolicyLab experts…

Childhood obesity increased in the first year of COVID-19 with significant disparities across race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Social distancing led to fewer physical activity opportunities but increased screen time and high-calorie food consumption, all co-determined by…

Health inequities are often driven by population-level social determinants of health, including public policies related to education, housing, and economic security, and by household-level social risks, such as food insecurity and housing instability. Many pediatric health systems…

Health-related social needs (HRSNs) are associated with poor and disparate child health outcomes, decreased access to preventive care, and increased acute care utilization. There is, therefore, growing momentum around addressing HRSNs through social care integration in pediatric health…

The objective of this study was to assess the impact of household food insecurity (HFI) over time on behavioral and developmental health in early childhood while considering the impact of timing/persistence of HFI and potential differences among racially or ethnically minoritized…

Early detection of health vulnerabilities in adolescents is integral to promoting healthy behaviors into adulthood. Our objective was to quantify the prevalence of health vulnerabilities among adolescents and examine differences by age and neighborhood opportunity. In a cross-sectional…

IMPORTANCE: Neighborhood conditions are known to broadly impact child health. Research to date has not examined the association of the Childhood Opportunity Index (COI), a multidimensional indicator of neighborhood environment conditions, specifically with pediatric primary care…

A growing evidence base suggests home and neighborhood environmental exposures may influence adolescent sleep, but few studies have assessed these relationships using methods that account for time-varying, location-specific exposures, or multiple neighborhood contexts. This study aimed…