Medical Home - Children in Vermont

Vermont

The American Academy of Pediatrics developed the medical home model to promote information exchange, enhance health care quality and cultural competence and increase continuity of care for children and adolescents. Medical homes provide preventive care, specialty care, educational services and family support, all of which help build trust and partnership among physicians, patients and their families. A medical home is not a specific building or place; rather, it is a partnership among the family, medical professionals and community resources.

Children without a medical home have greater unmet medical and dental needs than children who receive care in a medical home setting. Children with special health care needs who receive care outside of a medical home setting are almost three times as likely to have unmet health care needs compared with those who receive care within a medical home, and children without special health care needs are still nearly twice as likely to have unmet health care needs compared with their peers in medical homes.

According to America’s Health Rankings analysis, the prevalence of receiving care that meets medical home criteria is higher among:

• White and multiracial children compared with Hawaiian/Pacific Islander children. The prevalence is three times higher among white children compared with Hawaiian/Pacific Islander children.
• Children with a parent or guardian who graduated from college compared with those whose parents or guardians have less than a high school education. The prevalence increases with each increase in education level.
• Children without special health care needs compared with children with special health care needs.

Additional research finds populations with higher rates of receiving care that meet medical home criteria include:

• Children who speak English at home.
• Children who have insurance.
• Children from higher-income families. 

The American Academy of Pediatrics has a collection of resources on medical home implementation for health care practices including a framework, capacity building, care coordination education and monitoring. They also have tools and resources for families and caregivers and a list of organizations that support families partnering with child health professionals.

Healthy People 2030 has an objective to increase the proportion of children and adolescents who receive care in a medical home.

Akobirshoev, Ilhom, Susan Parish, Monika Mitra, and Robbie Dembo. “Impact of Medical Home on Health Care of Children With and Without Special Health Care Needs: Update from the 2016 National Survey of Children’s Health.” Maternal and Child Health Journal 23, no. 11 (November 1, 2019): 1500–1507. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-019-02774-9.