NCT07010289

Nurturing Outreach for Understanding and Reducing Inpatient Security of Health

NOURISH: Nurturing Outreach for Understanding and Reducing Inpatient Security of Health

• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 30 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Wake Forest University Health Sciences · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: —
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Food insecurity is the lack of consistent access to the food needed for a healthy life. Food insecurity among families whose child has been hospitalized is a critical problem affecting a large, vulnerable population. The purpose of this study is to identity the most effective ways to help those families with food insecurity.

Detailed description

To address food insecurity among families who child has been hospitalized, study objectives are 1) to demonstrate the feasibility and acceptability of providing family meals and grocery store gift cards to address food insecurity among children discharged from the hospital, and 2) evaluate the potential impact of the interventions on household food insecurity, 30-day readmission rates, and primary care follow up. To accomplish these objectives, this pilot feasibility trial will be conducted at Atrium Health Levine Children's-Brenner Children's Hospital, an academic medical center that serves communities with high rates of food insecurity, in collaboration with our long-term partner Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina. The will recruit families whose child was admitted to the hospital and screened positive for food insecurity. All families will be enrolled for a total of 4 weeks to evaluate the difference in food insecurity, family health measures, and hospital-based quality metrics (including readmission rates and primary care follow up).

Conditions

• Food Insecurity

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Prepared Meals	Participants will receive the intervention of weekly home meal delivery, consecutively for 4 weeks, delivered to their home. The meals will be provided by Providence Community Kitchen, which is a program of Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC. During the 4 weeks of meal provisions, participants will receive 7 family style frozen dinners delivered to the participant's home weekly. Meals are frozen, have minimal preparation time, and can be heated by oven.
OTHER	Grocery Gift Cards	Participants will receive weekly grocery store gift cards, consecutively for 4 weeks. During the 4 weeks of gift card provisions, participants will receive (1) $40.00 grocery store gift card weekly, mailed to participants' home address by study staff.
OTHER	Standard of Care	Participants will receive the current standard for care for families endorsing inpatient food insecurity during a hospitalization, which include provision of printed and electronic food access resources. Currently, all families with positive food insecurity screening are met by a community health worker in the hospital who reviews current food access status with families (including enrollment in federal nutrition programs) and provides them with printed and electronic resources of nearby food pantries and other food access resources available to them at time of discharge from the hospital.

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-07-07
• Primary completion: 2026-12-01
• Completion: 2026-12-01
• First posted: 2025-06-08
• Last updated: 2026-02-27

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States