Summer/Autumn 2008
Volume 11, Number 2
What's So Wrong about Drop-In Clinics?
by Howard Bach, MD
The other day, I was reading the paper and I came across a full page, color ad for a well known group of retail based clinics which are located in discount stores. In the ad was the following statement:
“Perfect for things like camp and sports physicals for your kids, vaccinations,
and cholesterol screenings. And since no appointment is needed, you can just walk right in...”
As I thought about this ad, a number of problems with this type of care came to my mind. Let me share them with you:
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Camp and sports physicals may be the only time that many older children and adolescents come to any medical provider. It is the “contact point’” for checking out a myriad of physical and emotional problems. Does this clinic address obesity issues, emotional issues and lifestyle issues? Do they have any background in child or adolescent development? Do they have any of your child’s past medical history whatsoever?
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If they do identify problems during the physical, can they initiate a care plan for these problems? Or do they just tell them to talk to their doctor and let them handle any further evaluation, referrals, etc.
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Does this visit get forwarded to the primary doctor at all? Or is the form filled out, case
closed. -
Does the clinic have records of previous immunizations given? If not, how do they know what shots are truly needed? For example, children now require two chickenpox vaccines instead of one. Do they know whether or not the patient had a second chickenpox shot before?
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How comfortable is the adolescent going to be in sharing, with an unknown “provider,” an intimate detail of their lives that they are concerned about. And if they do, what is that “provider” going to do about it? For that matter, will the “provider” ever ask those type of questions?
At Partners in Pediatrics, we firmly believe in continuity of care. It is not just a nice thing to do.
By having a doctor or associate provider who truly knows you and your child or adolescent, medical issues will be identified and followed, you can be assured of the best and most comprehensive health care. You can be confident that unnecessary testing will be avoided, appropriate referrals will be made when necessary and the best quality of care will be provided.
