North Carolina ranks in the top 10 of hungriest states in the U.S. and over 25,000 residents in Brunswick County are food insecure.

Novant Health wants to reverse, disrupt, and change these statistics by providing healthy food to all patient families in the Cape Fear Region. This program will address the immediate needs of families in distress. Novant Health understands this problem through both health and moral lenses. Low access to healthy food can greatly impact an individual or family’s health status and ability to manage chronic conditions like diabetes or hypertension. Food deserts are known to lead to poor diets, which contributes to obesity and heart disease.

Starting in January 2022, every patient who visits a Novant Health provider is screened for food insecurity. Emergency food packs are offered to those in immediate need. These packs (food boxes) contain enough shelf stable food to feed an individual or a family of 4 for 4 days. In addition to the food boxes, Novant Health connects these families with social services and other resources to address the family needs.

Food Lion Supports Novant Health In Food Pharmacy Pilot Program | Food Lion, LLC. 

The Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina

In 2023, Novant continues to:

• support community organizations and events aligned with this work through capacity building and charitable contributions.
• expand the Novant Health Food Pharmacy throughout its health system
• secure sustainable funding for Novant Health Food Pharmacy through public and private sector partners as well as NHRMC Foundation
• create continuing education opportunities for team members regarding definition and face of food insecurity in our health system and our community

Multiple points contributed to the increase the number of people screened this year compared to 2023:

• Increased focus on encouraging screening from NHMG leadership across our system
• Launch of CMS requirements to screen for social needs, including food insecurity, among admitted patients
• Enhanced reporting capability, where we automate screening counts captured across encounter types
• Comfort with team members and patients increasing in asking/answering screening questions – through education and expanded screening mediums that allow for more patient privacy

Source: Kimberly Dull: Director of Performance, Community Health & SDOH at Novant Health

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Brunswick County Public Health – Novant Health Food Insecurity Performance Measures
This information reflects the three metrics we agreed upon from our work in this space with our Brunswick County clinics:

• Food insecurity screen rates
• Emergency food pack distribution volumes
• MyCommunity referrals, connecting patients to local resources to meet their social needs.

Source: Christina T. Cammon |Program Manager | Social Determinants of Health |Novant Health Office of Health Equity and Community Health