As your child’s pediatricians, you can be sure that we focus on the health of your child and family. Many of our patients have tried the retail-based clinics, often found in supermarkets, pharmacies, and other retail locations. They pride themselves on getting patients in, making a quick diagnosis, and getting patients out the door with purchased medications in hand. You should know that our practice and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) have some concerns.
- The AAP has taken a strong stand against RBCs, stating that it “opposes retail-based clinics as an appropriate source of medical care for infants, children, and adolescents and strongly discourages their use.”1
- The AAP supports a model of care called the medical home, which provides accessible, family-centered, comprehensive, continuous, coordinated, compassionate, and culturally effective care for which the pediatrician and family share responsibility.2
- Retail-based clinics don’t have access to your child’s complete medical history and are making diagnoses based on incomplete information.
- Retail-based clinics are staffed by nurse practitioners or physician assistants with no physician on site to help these providers. While our nurse practitioner had a full two years of pediatric-specific training, there is no minimum pediatric training required of these practitioners at the retail clinics. Pediatric Physicians, PC will only staff Board Certified/Board Eligible physicians and pediatric nurse practitioners.
- No one reviews these clinics for compliance and quality issues the way that our office is reviewed.
- There is no such thing as a “minor illness” when it comes to children. We use these “minor illness” visits to identify other, potentially more serious issues. We also use this time with you to stay current on the events in your family and child’s lives.
- Getting routine care for your child should be done by your pediatrician who knows you and your family.
Our office is working to ensure that we meet your needs as your children’s medical home. We have added more early morning and evening hours and can usually accommodate same-day appointments. We’ve also partnered with other pediatric offices to create the Kids Time after hours clinics, where your child can see a genuine Board Certified pediatrician in the evenings or weekend afternoons when we are closed. You can be sure that you will get the highest quality care from us, in a way that works for you and your family. We welcome your suggestions about how we can serve you better, and we thank you for your trust.
- American Academy of Pediatrics, Retail-Based Clinic Policy Work Group. AAP principles concerning retail-based clinics. Pediatrics. 2006;118:2561–2562
- American Academy of Pediatrics, Medical Home Initiatives for Children With Special Needs Project Advisory Committee. The medical home. Pediatrics. 2002;110:184–186