Usual Place for Medical Care among Children

Asthma

People who have a place where they usually access medical care have and a better quality of life.**

Usual Place for Medical Care: Both children with asthma (74.7%) and children without asthma (71.2%), usually go to a doctor’s office for medical care.  Children with asthma (3.4%) were more likely than children without asthma (2.1%) to use a hospital emergency department as their usual place for medical care. Children without asthma (6.5%) were more likely than children with asthma (4.7%) not to have a usual place for medical care.

Age: Among children aged 0–4 years, those with asthma (5.9%) were more likely than those without asthma (2.2%) to use a hospital emergency department as their usual place for medical care., Among children aged 12–17 years, those without asthma (7.6%) were more likely than those with asthma (4.9%) not to have a usual place for medical care. No other age differences were observed.

Sex: Boys with asthma (4.1%) were more likely than boys without asthma (2.1%) to use a hospital emergency department as their usual place to go for medical care. No differences were observed among girls.

Race/Ethnicity: Regardless of asthma status, non-Hispanic black children (with asthma, 5.2%; without asthma, 5.1%) and Hispanic children (with asthma, 5.6%; without asthma, 3.2%) were more likely than white children (with asthma, 1.8%; without asthma, 0.9%) to use a hospital emergency department as a usual place for medical care. Among non-Hispanic black children, those without asthma (7.7%) were more likely than those with asthma (3.9%) to report not having a usual place for medical care. Of the three race and ethnicity groups, Hispanic children (with asthma, 11.4%; without asthma, 12.9%) were more likely to report not having a usual place for medical care than white (with asthma, 2.8%; without asthma, 3.2%) or black children (with asthma, 3.9%; without asthma, 7.7%).

Children who have asthma use a hospital emergency department as their usual place for medical care more than other children.

Poverty: Overall, regardless of asthma status, the percentage of children reporting a doctor’s office as their usual place for medical care increases gradually as income increases (e.g., poor, near-poor, and not poor).  The percentage of children for whom a hospital emergency department is the usual place for medical care and the percentage of children not having a usual place for medical care both decrease gradually as income increases.

Abbreviations: NH, non- Hispanic; CI, confidence interval.
*”Other” includes retail store clinic and minute clinic, school, friend or relative, Mexico and other locations outside of US, telephone, mental health service provider, and alternative health care;
“Poor” persons are below the poverty threshold. “Near poor” persons have incomes of 100% to less than 200% of the poverty threshold. “Not poor” have incomes that are at 200% or above.
**https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/Access-to-Health-Services

CDC’s National Asthma Control Program was created in 1999 to help the millions of people with asthma in the United States control their disease. The Program conducts national asthma surveillance and provides funds to states to help improve asthma surveillance and focus efforts and resources where they are needed.

Source: National Survey for Children’s Health, 2011-2012: question: “What kind of place does the selected child go to most often? Is it a doctor’s office, emergency room, hospital outpatient department, clinic, or some other place?”

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