A single source of health care: does it affect health experiences for inner-city children?

This study was designed to determine whether having a single source of health care affects the health experiences of inner-city children. Seventy-five women were interviewed about the health experiences of their preschool-aged children (range 10-58 months) and were asked about utilization, emergency room use, preventive care, delays in care, and availability of a provider for the child's various medical needs. While most (94.7 percent) of the mothers identified a regular source of care for their child's preventive care, 74.7 percent named the same source for their child's sick care. There were no differences in most measures between mothers with a single source of care and those with multiple sources. However, those with a single source of care reported feeling their providers were more available (p < 0.05). Thus, naming a single source of health care may not be a useful indicator of better health experiences for inner-city children.