Health Clinic Readiness to Implement Nutrition Supports in Partnership With SNAP-Ed.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the readiness of health clinics to implement nutrition support strategies in partnership with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) program.

DESIGN

Qualitative study using semistructured interviews.

SETTING

South Carolina.

PARTICIPANTS

A convenience sample of key informants (n = 26) from health clinics (n = 15) interested in partnering with the SNAP-Ed program.

PHENOMENON OF INTEREST

Health clinic readiness to implement nutrition supports, including motivation, current capacities, and capacity-building needs.

ANALYSIS

Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were analyzed descriptively and thematically.

RESULTS

Clinics were most interested in implementing food insecurity screenings and making referrals to resources for accessing nutritious foods and produce prescription programs. Motivation was largely driven by a commitment to prevent chronic disease and on the basis of past success implementing a healthy eating strategy. A wide range of current capacities and capacity-building needs to implement strategies of interest were identified.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

Findings suggest the readiness of some clinics to partner with SNAP-Ed to implement nutrition support strategies and identifies early insights on areas practitioners might need to engage clinics in for capacity-building. Some implementers might need further training before having their own capacity to support clinics in the wide range of nutrition support strategies included, which could be explored in future studies.