Survey Responses by Food Insecurity Status, Intercept Survey at Four Public and Nonprofit Clinics in Los Angeles County, Fall 2018 (n = 1,013)
| All | Not food insecure | Food insecure | Odds ratio (95% CI)* | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (n = 1013) | (n = 362) | (n = 626) | |||
| Clinics should help me find food (strongly agree or agree) | 84.6% | 79.4% | 87.3% | 1.78 (1.26, 2.53) | <0.0001 |
| With whom most comfortable sharing personal information about not having enough to eat: | |||||
| Doctor | 45.3% | 35.6% | 51.0% | 1.88 (1.44, 2.45) | <0.0001 |
| Nurse | 15.6% | 11.6% | 17.9% | 1.66 (1.13, 2.43) | 0.009 |
| Front desk staff | 4.5% | 2.5% | 5.6% | 2.32 (1.10, 4.89) | 0.026 |
| On paper | 21.2% | 15.2% | 24.6% | 1.82 (1.30, 2.56) | <0.0001 |
| On a computer or tablet | 10.3% | 7.7% | 11.8% | 1.60 (1.01, 2.52) | 0.040 |
| Currently participate in SNAP | 26.7% | 19.3% | 31.0% | 1.88 (1.38, 2.58) | <0.0001 |
| If not currently enrolled in SNAP, why: | |||||
| Don’t know how to apply | 18.7% | 12.8% | 22.7% | 2.00 (1.33, 3.02) | <0.0001 |
| Am not eligible | 37.4% | 40.1% | 35.6% | 0.82 (0.61, 1.12) | 0.218 |
| Don’t want to be dependent on government | 25.3% | 30.8% | 21.6% | 0.62 (0.44, 0.87) | 0.005 |
| Application too difficult | 2.8% | 2.6% | 2.7% | 0.93 (0.37, 2.34) | 0.875 |
| Concerned what others will think | 1.7% | 2.1% | 1.4% | 0.67 (0.21, 2.11) | 0.495 |
| Worried about citizenship | 6.4% | 3.5% | 8.4% | 2.57 (1.25, 5.26) | 0.010 |
| Applied and waiting | 2.1% | 2.1% | 2.1% | 1.02 (0.36, 2.88) | 0.920 |
| Other reason | 10.5% | 10.7% | 10.3% | 0.96 (0.59, 1.55) | 0.880 |
| Staff ever asked if client has enough to eat (yes) | 33.8% | 38.4% | 31.0% | 0.72 (0.55, 0.95) | 0.020 |
| Staff recommended SNAP | 28.8% | 28.6% | 28.9% | 1.01 (0.76, 1.35) | 0.937 |
| Enrolled in SNAP due to staff referral | 20.0% | 14.0% | 23.6% | 1.89 (1.33, 2.69) | <0.0001 |
↵* Food insecure compared to not food insecure (reference).
Note: For the Hunger Vital Sign 2-item screener, 25 (2.5%) participants did not answer both questions.
Abbreviations: CI, Confidence Interval; SNAP, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.