Social Determinants of Health in Podiatric Patients: Trends and Common Concerns
© 2025 HMP Global. All Rights Reserved.
Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Podiatry Today or HMP Global, their employees, and affiliates.
What social determinants of health are the most common among podiatry patients? Researchers at one institution presented their findings in an abstract presented at the 2025 American Podiatric Medical Association National conference on this topic, and shared some of their insights with Podiatry Today.
Gary M. Rothenberg, DPM, lead author on the study, shared that his team reviewed over 700 questionnaires on social determinants of health completed by podiatry patients at their large academic institution, and calculated the responses among 10 question areas.1 After processing the data, they found the most commonly cited concern among social determinants of health was virtual care challenges, selected by 137 (19.3%) patients. The second highest domain was social isolation, selected by 126 (17.8%) patients. Interestingly, only 8.18%, or 58 total patients requested assistance, despite many more indicating areas of need.1
Dr. Rothenberg detailed his team’s assertion that concerns associated with social determinants of health are indeed common among podiatry patients, and should be addressed through available resources.
“Specific to our findings, enhancing virtual care literacy and implementing social support structures can help address the barriers found among our patients,” he explained. “It is critical for all healthcare practitioners to recognize the role that social determinants of health issues play in patient outcomes.”
Reference
1. Rothenberg GM, Kochhar K, Tronstein E. Social Determinants of Health Screening Identifies Social Isolation and Virtual Care Challenges to Have Significant Impact on Podiatry Patients at a Large Academic Institution. Abstract presented at the APMA National, July 24-27, 2025, Grapevine, TX.
