Families on the move and children's health care.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the relationship of family moves to children's health care use.


METHODS
Analyses of data from the 1988 National Health Interview Survey of Child Health (NHIS-CH). This survey uses a multisite probability cluster technique to achieve nationally representative estimates of health and demographic characteristics of the US civilian population.


METHODS
17,110 US children and their families who took part in the 1988 NHIS-CH.


METHODS
The 1988 NHIS-CH collected health and demographic data including family mobility information on 17,110 US children and their families. This study analyzed the relationship of number of family moves to reporting a regular site for preventive pediatric health care services, a regular site for pediatric sick care, and routine use of emergency departments when a child was sick.


RESULTS
Overall, 8% of US children were reported to lack a regular site for preventive care services, 7% a site for sick care, and 3% routinely used an emergency department for sick care. However, 14% of children who had moved three or more times lacked a regular site for preventive care and 10% lacked a regular site for sick care, compared to only 3% of children who had never moved. Children who had moved more than twice were three times as likely to lack a regular site for preventive or sick care and 1.6 times as likely to use an emergency department for sick care, as were children who had never moved.


CONCLUSIONS
Families with increased mobility are more likely to lack a regular site for both preventive and sick care and to use emergency departments when their children become ill.
Fowler
M G
MG
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Bethesda, MD 20892.
Simpson
G A
GA
Schoendorf
K C
KC
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D004632:Emergency Medical Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005006:Ethnicity; D005190:Family; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007223:Infant; D008016:Life Change Events; D016015:Logistic Models; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011157:Population Dynamics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States