Clinic-Based Financial Coaching Offers Health Benefits to Infants

FRIDAY, Feb. 10, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Offering clinic-based financial coaching improves adherence to recommended pediatric visits and vaccinations among low-income families, according to a study published online Feb. 2 in Pediatrics.

Adam Schickedanz, M.D., Ph.D., from the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles, and colleagues compared clinic-based financial coaching to usual care among 81 low-income parent-infant dyads attending pediatric preventive care visits (35 intervention and 46 control). The impact of the longitudinal financial intervention delivered by trained coaches addressing parent-identified, strengths-based financial goals was examined.

The researchers found that the rate of missed visits was significantly lower among those randomly assigned to clinic-based financial coaching versus controls (0.46 versus 1.07 missed of four recommended visits; mean difference, 0.61 visits missed). The likelihood of having up-to-date immunizations at each visit was increased for intervention participants (relative risk, 1.26), and they had fewer missed vaccinations by the end of the six-month preventive care visit period (2.52 versus 3.8 missed vaccinations).

"When we approached the parents in clinic to offer this service and support them with their financial goals, many already recognized that their finances and the health of their child were intertwined," Schickedanz said in a statement. "It made sense, from their perspective, to receive financial coaching services in combination with their child's health care."

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