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• 109 CHILD HEALTH ► Indicator 12: Percent of Children Having a Usual Source of Routine Health Care The receipt of health care from a regular source is a concern because it is an indicator of continuity of care, which can affect the quality of care as well as the cost. Most children have a usual source of routine health care, especially white children and younger children, as shown by Indicator 12. The sources of care vary by race, age of child, and type of care, as shown below. White chil- dren appear more likely than minorities to go to a doctor's office or private clinic. When sick or injured, minority children are more likely than whites to seek care from hospitals, where the cost of visits is much higher than the cost of visits to a doctor's offices Data for Indicator 12 and below are from the North Carolina Health Profile telephone survey. See Technical Notes, page 5, keeping in mind that these results are based on information pro- vided by the children's adult caregivers. Data for children under one are not included because the survey included too few minorities in this age group: Percent of Children by Reported Place of Last Health Care 72.4 in Past Year by Type of Care 82.6 55.3 North Carolina 1995 10.9 16.0 , Care When 0.0 Neighborhood or Government Clinic Sick or Injured Routine Care Ages 1 -4 Whites Minorities Whites Minorities Doctor's Office or Private Clinic 75.8 70.0 76.3 61.6 Hospital Emergency Room 10.0 12.4 0.0 1.0 Neighborhood or Government Clinic 6.1 12.6 16.8 19.3 Other* 8.1 5.0 6.6 18.1 Unknown 0.0. 0.0 0.3 0.0 Ages 5 -17 Doctor's Office or Private Clinic 72.4 53.6 82.6 55.3 Hospital Emergency Room 10.9 16.0 , 0.4 0.0 Neighborhood or Government Clinic 2.9 7.6 8.0 33.1 Other* 13.8 19.7 8,8 11.6 Unknown 0.0. 31 - 0.2 0.0 *Mainly hospital, hospital outpatient clinic, and nonhospital emergency or urgent care center. Source: North Carolina Health Profile, Fall 1995. 32 Access to Health Care In North Carolina