Retail Health Clinics Popular for Kids

April 20, 2007 -- One in 10 U.S. children have used a retail health clinic, and that figure will likely rise, a new poll shows.

Retail health clinics, also called in-store clinics or convenient care clinics, are located in stores or pharmacies.

The first retail health clinic opened in 2000, and there are 300 in the U.S. today with another 2,000 expected by the end of 2008, according to the poll report.

The poll included a nationally representative sample of 2,076 U.S. adults. Knowledge Networks conducted the poll in March for the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital.

The poll shows that 10% of children and 11% of adults have used retail health clinics, and that 15% of children and 19% of adults are very likely or likely to do so in the future.

Among parents who had already taken a child to a retail clinic, 70% said they are likely or very likely to take their child to a retail clinic again.

However, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) opposes retail-based clinics as an appropriate source of medical care for infants, children, and adolescents.

In a statement, the AAP says it "strongly discourages" the use of retail-based clinics for babies, kids, and teens because the clinics aren't a "medical home" providing consistent long-term care for patients. The statement was published in Pediatrics' December 2006 edition.

The new poll shows that 89% of the children who used retail health clinics had another source of medical care that they usually used.

In the poll report, C.S. Mott Children's Hospital notes patients and doctors "will face challenges regarding how to coordinate health care across retail clinics and more traditional care settings, in ways that promote access to timely care and safeguard children's health."