The medical home concept was originally developed to help support children with special health care needs. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) defines the medical home as a model of care that is accessible, family-centered, continuous, comprehensive, coordinated, compassionate and culturally effective and is the source of primary care. But does the medical home benefit children without special needs?
The study, “The Value of the Medical Home for Children Without Special Health Care Needs,” in the January 2012 Pediatrics (published online Dec. 19, 2011) found that the medical home setting does provide benefits to children without special health care needs.
Overall, 58 percent of children without special health care needs have a medical home. Benefits of this setting include improved health care use, including decreased emergency department visits, and increased health-promoting behaviors such as family reading, sleep hygiene, helmet use and decreased screen time.
The authors conclude that their findings strengthen the evidence base supporting the AAP recommendation that all children have a medical home.
