Why Use Codes?

You can use SDOH data to:

• Recognize patient needs
• Refer patients to social and governmental services
• Track patients’ needs across health care and other organizations

This data can also inform policy decisions at the health system and local-, state-, and federal-governmental levels.

But we need a way to capture this information during medical visits.

Documenting and collecting data on ICD-10-CM Z codes that describe each SDOH or social circumstance helps identify the risks each patient faces.