Regular source of primary care and emergency department use of children in Victoria

• Published in: Journal of paediatrics and child health 2016-03, Vol.52 (3), p.303-307
• Main Authors: Turbitt, Erin, Freed, Gary Lee
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Child; child health service; Child, Preschool; Children & youth; Emergency medical care; emergency medicine; Emergency Service, Hospital - statistics & numerical data; Emergency Service, Hospital - utilization; Female; General Practitioners - statistics & numerical data; General Practitioners - utilization; Health care policy; Health Care Surveys; Health Services Accessibility - statistics & numerical data; Health Services Needs and Demand; Humans; Logistic Models; Male; Multivariate Analysis; Outcome Assessment (Health Care); parent; Parents; Parents & parenting; Pilot Projects; Prevalence; Primary care; primary health care; Primary Health Care - statistics & numerical data; Primary Health Care - utilization; Surveys and Questionnaires; Urinary Tract Infections - diagnosis; Urinary Tract Infections - therapy; Victoria
• ISSN: 1034-4810; 1440-1754
• DOI: 10.1111/jpc.13027

Aim The aim of this paper was to study the prevalence of a regular source of primary care for Victorian children attending one of four emergency departments (EDs) and to determine associated characteristics, including ED use. Methods Responses were collected via an electronic survey from parents attending EDs with their child (≤9 years of age) for a lower‐urgency condition. Single, multiple choice, and Likert scale responses were analysed using bivariate and logistic regression tests. Results Of the 1146 parents who provided responses, 80% stated their child has a regular source of primary care. Of these, care is mostly received by a general practitioner (GP) (95%) in GP group practices (71%). Approximately 20% have changed where their child receives primary care in the last year. No associations were observed between having a regular source of primary care and frequency of ED attendance in the past 12 months, although parents whose child did not have a regular source of primary care were more likely to view the ED as a more convenient place to receive care than the primary care provider (39% without regular source vs. 18% with regular source; P < 0.0001). Children were less likely to have a regular source of primary care if their parents were younger, had a lower household income, lower education, and were visiting a hospital in a lower socio‐economic indexes for areas rank. Conclusions Policy options to improve continuity of care for children may require investigation. Increasing the prevalence of regular source of primary care for children may in turn reduce ED visits.