This research summarizes findings from eight focus groups with low-income parents of children ages five years and younger in New York City, conducted in English and Spanish by Public Agenda in July and August 2018.

For four of the focus groups, participants were recruited by a professional market research facility in Manhattan. In total, 40 parents participated in the focus groups at the market research facility. All participants were low-income parents of children ages five years and younger who had experience taking their children to pediatricians.They included residents of all five boroughs of New York City and reflected a diversity of low-income parents in terms of race and ethnicity, age, educational attainment, employment status and frequency with which they took their children to pediatricians.

For the other four focus groups, participants were recruited by community organizations associated with United Hospital Fund’s Partnerships for Early Childhood Development initiative: Children’s Aid in the Bronx, the Northern Manhattan Perinatal Partnership in Harlem, and Public Health Solutions in Queens. In total, 48 parents participated in the focus groups at the community organizations. All participants in these groups were parents of children ages five years and younger and clients of one or another of the community organizations and had experience taking their children to pediatricians. Two of these groups were conducted in Spanish.