PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Liaw, Winston AU - Bakos-Block, Christine AU - Northrup, Thomas F. AU - Stotts, Angela L. AU - Hernandez, Abigail AU - Finzetto, Lisandra AU - Oloyede, Pelumi AU - Moscoso Rodriguez, Bruno AU - Johnson, Skye AU - Gilbert, Lauren AU - Dobbins, Jessica AU - Woodard, LeChauncy AU - Murphy, Thomas TI - A Qualitative Analysis of a Primary Care Medical-Legal Partnership: Impact, Barriers, and Facilitators AID - 10.3122/jabfm.2023.230328R2 DP - 2024 Jul 01 TA - The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine PG - 637--649 VI - 37 IP - 4 4099 - http://www.jabfm.org/content/37/4/637.short 4100 - http://www.jabfm.org/content/37/4/637.full SO - J Am Board Fam Med2024 Jul 01; 37 AB - Background: Certain health-related risk factors require legal interventions. Medical-legal partnerships (MLPs) are collaborations between clinics and lawyers that address these health-harming legal needs (HHLNs) and have been shown to improve health and reduce utilization.Objective: The objective of this study is to explore the impact, barriers, and facilitators of MLP implementation in primary care clinics.Methods: A qualitative design using a semistructured interview assessed the perceived impact, barriers, and facilitators of an MLP, among clinicians, clinic and MLP staff, and clinic patients. Open AI software (otter.ai) was used to transcribe interviews, and NVivo was used to code the data. Braun & Clarke’s framework was used to identify themes and subthemes.Results: Sixteen (n = 16) participants were included in this study. Most respondents were women (81%) and white (56%). Four respondents were clinic staff, and 4 were MLP staff while 8 were clinic patients. Several primary themes emerged including: Patients experienced legal issues that were pernicious, pervasive, and complex; through trusting relationships, the MLP was able to improve health and resolve legal issues, for some; mistrust, communication gaps, and inconsistent staffing limited the impact of the MLP; and, the MLP identified coordination and communication strategies to enhance trust and amplify its impact.Conclusion: HHLNs can have a significant, negative impact on the physical and mental health of patients. Respondents perceived that MLPs improved health and resolved these needs, for some. Despite perceived successes, integration between the clinical and legal organizations was elusive.