Whelan Ciara, Chambers Catharine, Chan Michael, Thomas Sunu, Ramos Gabrielle, Hwang Stephen W
Centre for Research on Inner City Health, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
J Prim Care Community Health. 2010 Jul 1;1(2):78-82. doi: 10.1177/2150131910372233.
Mobile health units (MHUs) are an important source of health care for the uninsured; however, it is unclear what role these units play in Canada, where a universal health insurance system exists. The purpose of this study was to understand why individuals who live in a country with universal health insurance seek care at an MHU and to determine whether MHUs are used in addition to or in place of the client's usual source of care. This study investigated the use of the Rotary Club of Toronto Health Bus among 150 homeless and marginally housed adults in Toronto, Ontario, over a 3-month period. Data were collected on demographic characteristics, current and lifetime homelessness, health care use, and reasons for using the Health Bus. The majority of participants (94.6%) had a regular health care source, primarily doctor's offices (41.6%) and community health centers (16.1%); 18 (12.1%) stated that the Health Bus was their usual source of care. Participants were frequent users of the Health Bus, reporting a median of 7.0 visits (interquartile range, 3.5-12.0 visits) in the past 3 months. Most clients (86.0%) reported using the Health Bus to obtain basic supplies (eg, vitamins, socks); health problems were cited as reasons for using the Health Bus for 55 (36.7%) participants. The findings suggest that in a country with universal health insurance, MHUs supplement other sources of health care, providing essential supplies and offering important outreach services to a high-needs population.
移动医疗单位（MHUs）是未参保者获得医疗保健的重要来源；然而，在存在全民医疗保险体系的加拿大，这些单位发挥何种作用尚不清楚。本研究的目的是了解生活在全民医疗保险国家的个人为何在移动医疗单位寻求治疗，并确定移动医疗单位是作为客户常规医疗来源的补充还是替代。本研究调查了安大略省多伦多市150名无家可归和住房条件差的成年人在3个月期间对多伦多扶轮社健康巴士的使用情况。收集了有关人口统计学特征、当前和一生的无家可归情况、医疗保健使用情况以及使用健康巴士的原因的数据。大多数参与者（94.6%）有常规的医疗保健来源，主要是医生办公室（41.6%）和社区健康中心（16.1%）；18人（12.1%）表示健康巴士是他们常规的医疗来源。参与者经常使用健康巴士，报告在过去3个月中平均就诊7.0次（四分位间距为3.5 - 12.0次）。大多数客户（86.0%）报告使用健康巴士获取基本用品（如维生素、袜子）；55名（36.7%）参与者将健康问题作为使用健康巴士的原因。研究结果表明，在一个有全民医疗保险的国家，移动医疗单位补充了其他医疗保健来源，为高需求人群提供基本用品并提供重要的外展服务。
