Urgent care centers can support, not replace pediatricians: AAP

Urgent care centers can provide care for young people who are mildly or moderately sick or injured, but the centers should not replace children's so-called medical home, according to a policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

"I think that one of the underlying messages is that urgent care centers are an important place for children to get urgent economical and acute care, but there is very little research out there," said Dr. Gregory Conners, the lead author of the new policy statement and vice chair of pediatrics for emergency and urgent care at Children's Mercy Hospital.