Blewett, Lynn A.
Schwehr, Natalie

SHADAC Researchers Co-Author Maternal and Child Health Journal Article on Medical Home Contributions to Child Health Outcomes

SHADAC researchers Natalie Mac Arthur and Lynn Blewett recently published a journal article in Maternal and Child Health Journal that examines the medical home model—a widely accepted model of team-based primary care—and its unique contributions to child health outcomes.  

Their analysis drew on data from the 2016-2017 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) to assess five key medical home components–usual source of care, personal doctor/nurse, family-centered care, referral access, and coordinated care–and their associations with child outcomes. Health outcomes included emergency department (ED) visits, unmet health care needs, preventive medical visits, preventive dental visits, health status, and oral health status.

Key Findings

• Results showed that children who were not white, living in non-English households, with less family income or education, or who were uninsured had lower rates of access to a medical home and its components.
   
• A medical home was associated with beneficial child outcomes for all six of the outcomes and the family-centered care component was associated with better results in five outcomes.
   
• ED visits were less likely for children who received care coordination.

These findings highlight the role of key components of the medical home model and the importance of access to family-centered health care that provides needed coordination for children of all backgrounds. Health care reforms should consider disparities in access to a medical home and specific components and the contributions of each component to provide quality primary care for all children. Understanding the role of medical home components contributes to the refinement of the model and can inform health care policy efforts to improve health equity for all children.    

Read the full article in the Maternal and Child Health journal.