Sick child day care units have been developed to provide care for children who are excluded from day care because of illness. We implemented a sick child day care unit at a military hospital. In the first year of operation, 526 children were admitted to the unit, with a daily average of 1.9 children and a range of 0-9 children. The most common admission diagnoses were: otitis media (21.3%), upper respiratory infection (19.4%), gastroenteritis (10.6%), and viral syndrome (10.5%). A sick child day care unit in a military hospital can provide a useful service to dependent children, their parents, and the military.