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Updated: Jun 28, 2026
09:36
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Family structure differences in health care utilization among U.S. children
Bridget K Gorman1, Jennifer Braverman
1Sociology, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA. bkgorman@rice.edu
Social Science & Medicine (1982)
|October 22, 2008
Summary
Children
Area of Science:
- Health Services Research
- Pediatric Health
- Sociology of the Family
Background:
- Children's access to healthcare is influenced by family structure.
- Disparities in healthcare access exist across different family types.
- Understanding these disparities is crucial for improving child health outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine how family structure impacts children's healthcare access and utilization.
- To identify barriers to healthcare faced by children in various family structures.
- To determine if socioeconomic status (SES) and child health mediate these relationships.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the U.S. National Health Interview Survey (2001-2003).
- Employed logistic regression models to analyze healthcare access and barriers.
- Compared healthcare utilization patterns across diverse family structures.
Main Results:
- Significant variations in healthcare access and barriers were found across family structures.
- Children of single mothers showed distinct healthcare access patterns compared to children of single fathers.
- Socioeconomic status significantly mediated healthcare access for children in single-mother and cohabiting families.
Conclusions:
- Family structure is a significant predictor of children's healthcare access.
- Targeted interventions may be needed to address healthcare disparities in specific family types.
- Socioeconomic factors play a critical role in mediating healthcare access, with varying importance by family structure.
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