Integration of Case-Based Dialogue to Enhance Medical Students' Understanding of Using Health Communication to Address Social Determinants of Health.

Background and Objectives: With the ever-growing diversity within our communities, it is imperative that we integrate social determinants of health (SDOH) such as racial disparity, economic instability, lack of transportation, intimate partner violence, and limited social supports, and the importance of health literacy into undergraduate medical education. By incorporating evidence-based curriculum on the disproportionality within healthcare faced by racial and ethnic minorities, we have the opportunity to develop more culturally sensitive providers. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of a case-based debrief experience on medical students' knowledge about how social determinants of health can impact health and healthcare within a family medicine clinical setting and their intent to practice in an underserved community. Methods: We utilized a retrospective paired-sample Results: We found a statistically significant improvement in students' reported knowledge about SDOH, as well as the confidence and intent to work with and care for individuals of diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. Conclusion: Medical students must have the knowledge and self-efficacy to understand how social determinants of health can impact health and healthcare within a family medicine clinical setting. As a result of integrating more active learning strategies such as the case-base and debrief experience, students may have a more robust medical education experience.