WIP 141 - Produce Home Delivery to Achieve Early Childhood Nutrition Equity

Poster Number: WIP 141
Publication Number: WIP 141.2612

Background: Fifteen percent of families with children ages 0-5 years in our primary care office endorse food insecurity (FI) and 80% identify as Black. Children with FI are at increased risk of poorer health outcomes, and are more likely to consume highly processed foods, and less fresh produce. Among adult populations, produce home delivery programs mitigate some of the burden of FI, but data from pediatric settings are lacking.

Objective: To increase the percentage of FI families with children ages 0 to 5 years in our primary care office who are receiving biweekly deliveries of produce from our community partner's produce home delivery program from 0% to 45% by April 2024.

Design/Methods: As part of a larger program of research to improve nutritional quality among children with FI, we created a referral to a produce home delivery program. First, we developed a key driver diagram with our community partner to inform our theory for improvement. Next, we are conducting a series of Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycles to implement and improve the process. Our first PDSA cycle to test the initial process was three referrals by one physician. After a brief pause to confirm enrollment capabilities from our community partner, we began our second PDSA cycle where we trained two attending physicians on the referral process. Our third PDSA cycle is educating all office staff on the referral process to ensure the program is offered to all eligible families. Additional PDSA cycles will be completed based on preliminary data and feedback from staff and families. Rates of reported FI among patients 0 to 5 years will be tracked weekly. Referral outcomes, including number referred and time to first delivery, will be tracked weekly to ensure families are connected to the program. Use of the on-site pantry will be tracked as a balancing measure. The first referrals to our community partner’s produce home delivery program were sent in Aug 2023. As of Oct 2023, 62 families have been referred. We will track referral numbers/outcomes through April 2024. This work is under IRB review as of Oct 2023.