The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine
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To review adolescents' utilization of a hospital emergency department (ED) in a rural area, to identify their characteristics, and to explore their motivation to seek health care in this setting. ⋯ Many adolescents in this rural area were found not to have an identified primary care source and to seek health care in EDs. Illnesses that could have been prevented or treated in a more cost-effective setting thus become "emergencies." Primary care sources are needed that are accessible and acceptable to adolescents.