Physician Engagement With ThriveLink: An Artificial Intelligence–Driven Referral System for Health-Related Social Needs

Emergency departments (EDs) are critical access points for identifying patients with unmet health-related social needs, but there are many barriers to addressing these needs. Our urban, safety-net ED operationalized ThriveLink, a telephonic, artificial intelligence-driven referral system that connects patients to public benefit programs and community resources without requiring smartphone or internet access. We integrated ThriveLink into our electronic medical record (EMR) and trained clinicians to place patient referrals, but initial referral and connection rates were low. The objectives of this study were to increase physician engagement and demonstrate the feasibility of ThriveLink in the ED.

We implemented a plan-do-study-act (PDSA) cycle to determine the barriers to ED physician engagement with ThriveLink. Initial barriers included the number of steps needed to place a referral and clinicians being unaware of ThriveLink resulting in low buy-in. Barriers were addressed through clinician education sessions, engagement of ED operations leadership, and infrastructure changes to reduce referral steps. We also created financial incentives for physicians and employed QR codes for easier referral access.

From March 1 to July 1, 2025, 125 patients were referred to ThriveLink from the ED. Only one patient was connected with supplemental nutrition assistance program, and five patients had pending applications. After the PSDA cycle, we measured the impact and feasibility of the above changes. By December 22, 2025, 306 patients were referred and 69 patients connected via phone with the ThriveLink AI-assisted chatbot. Patients received $19,350 of resources including food, supplemental security disability income, and emergency aid to the elderly. Another $75,999 in resources are pending application review. All data is tracked on a real-time dashboard for closed-loop referrals.

We found it was feasible to implement ThriveLink to connect ED patients with social benefit resources without adding burden to already overextended clinical teams. We are continuing to explore additional ways to improve clinician engagement, including EMR changes to make the referral process simpler. Future work will examine how ThriveLink can improve patient outcomes and ED utilization metrics.