Clinical trial · Interventional
Mobile-based Social Services Screening and Referral Tool in an Pediatric Emergency Department
Pilot Study of a Novel Mobile-based Social Services Self-screening and Referral Tool in an Urban Pediatric Emergency Department
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
This study will determine the feasibility and effectiveness of using a mobile-based social services screening and referral tool in an urban pediatric Emergency Department (ED). Families will be offered the option to either download the tool, known as HelpSteps, as a mobile application ("app") on a personal cell phone or to use the app on a provided tablet. After leading the family through a brief social needs screening survey, HelpSteps will recommend local social service agencies based on identified needs and location. Families will then complete a brief survey on the ease of use of the tool as well as receive a follow-up call to ask about usefulness of the tool in solving social problems. The investigators will also ask physicians to fill out a brief survey about the use of the tool in the ED.
Conditions
Conditions (5)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emergencies | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Mobile Applications | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Pediatric ALL | Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia | ALIAS | 0.90 |
| Poverty | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Social Determinants of Health | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| HelpSteps application | Other | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (1)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Intervention
- description
- All enrolled subjects will be given access to the HelpSteps application, either via their personal cell phone or to a provided tablet.
- interventionNames
- Other: HelpSteps application
Primary outcomes (1)
- measure
- Prevalence of Social Needs
- timeFrame
- Day of enrollment
- description
- Number of social needs categories screened positive for or selected as a need
Secondary outcomes (4)
- measure
- Number of referral agencies selected/contacted
- timeFrame
- Day of enrollment and Two weeks post-enrollment
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * All parents/caregivers or patients 18 and older presenting to a pediatric emergency department Exclusion Criteria: * Non-English speaking * Parents/caregivers or patients Families whose children are triaged to high acuity
References
Publications (3)
- BACKGROUNDBottino CJ, Rhodes ET, Kreatsoulas C, Cox JE, Fleegler EW. Food Insecurity Screening in Pediatric Primary Care: Can Offering Referrals Help Identify Families in Need? Acad Pediatr. 2017 Jul;17(5):497-503. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2016.10.006. Epub 2017 Mar 13. PMID 28302365
- BACKGROUNDFleegler EW, Lieu TA, Wise PH, Muret-Wagstaff S. Families' health-related social problems and missed referral opportunities. Pediatrics. 2007 Jun;119(6):e1332-41. doi: 10.1542/peds.2006-1505. PMID 17545363
- BACKGROUNDHassan A, Scherer EA, Pikcilingis A, Krull E, McNickles L, Marmon G, Woods ER, Fleegler EW. Improving Social Determinants of Health: Effectiveness of a Web-Based Intervention. Am J Prev Med. 2015 Dec;49(6):822-31. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2015.04.023. Epub 2015 Jul 26. PMID 26215831