The purpose of this study is to evaluate a novel Electronic Health Record (EHR)-based WIC referral and care coordination program. Specifically, this program refers children to WIC and provides a secure data connection for communication between health care providers and WIC team members. The specific aims are to: 1) Better understand the WIC referral gap by using structured EHR data to explore characteristics of ~7,000 uninsured or Medicaid-covered pediatric patients ages 0 through 4 years who: (a) report existing WIC benefits, (b) are not enrolled but desire referral, and (c) those who do not desire WIC referral despite potential eligibility; 2) Determine whether EHR-based WIC referrals result in successful enrollment; and 3) Explore the impact of providing EHR access for WIC staff on care coordination, using surveys of 100 WIC parents and 40 WIC staff members.
Start Date: October 2021
ID #: CAS079
Organization: Wake Forest University Health Sciences
Project Lead: Kimberly Montez
Resource Type: Commissioned Research Project Summary
Keywords: Health Care, Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
Focus Area: Nutrition Policy & Programs
Age Groups: Pregnant women, infants and toddlers (ages 0 to 2), Preschool-age children (ages 3 to 5)
Related Research
June 2024
CACFP Family Childcare Home Sponsor Perspectives – Serious Deficiency Challenges
The federal Child and Adult Care Food Program, commonly known as CACFP, ensures over 4.2 million children, mostly in families with low income, receive nutritious meals and snacks in childcare. However, not all qualifying childcare providers participate in this beneficial program. Research suggests that the serious deficiency process, designed to ensure program integrity, may hinder MoreApril 2024
Mixed methods evaluation of the COVID-19 changes to the WIC cash-value benefit for fruits and vegetables
Recent cash-value benefit (CVB) increases are a positive development to help increase WIC participant fruits and vegetables (FV) access. This mixed method study aimed to evaluate (a) the CVB changes’ impact on FV access among WIC child participants measured by CVB redemption rates, (b) facilitators and barriers to CVB changes’ implementation, and (c) differences in MoreMarch 2024