Health Centers Coming to Two Schools

Araceli Mancia, right, and Sofia Kilpatrick, both medical assistants at the Wellness Center at Jones Elementary School, work Wednesday at the center in Springdale.
Araceli Mancia, right, and Sofia Kilpatrick, both medical assistants at the Wellness Center at Jones Elementary School, work Wednesday at the center in Springdale.

A $500,000 federal grant will pay for construction or renovation necessary to establish health clinics at Elmdale and Parson Hills elementary schools.

At A Glance

School-Based Health Centers

School-based health centers are relatively new to Arkansas — there are 15 in the state, all established since 2009 — but the concept has been in place elsewhere in the country for many years. There are nearly 2,000 school-based health centers nationwide, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Most are open every day school is in session. There are three in Northwest Arkansas: Jones Elementary School in Springdale, Owl Creek Elementary School in Fayetteville and Lincoln Elementary School.

Source: Staff Report

The new health centers will be modeled after the one at Jones Elementary School, which opened in 2010. Both centers, like the one at Jones, will be run through a partnership between the schools and the Community Clinic at St. Francis House, which applied for the grant in June. Officials learned last month their grant application had been approved.

The new centers probably will be open by the end of this year, said Mary Miller, the School District’s coordinated school health liaison.

The grant came from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through the Affordable Care Act, which provides $200 million from fiscal years 2010 to 2013 for school-based health centers. The latest round of money announced last month involved 197 grants worth a combined $80.3 million.

School-based health centers go beyond the capabilities of the typical school nurse’s office, Miller said. They provide students and their families a convenient, inexpensive option for treatment of various illnesses and injuries. Some also offer services such as counseling for both children and adults.

Staff members are qualified to draw blood, give vaccines, write prescriptions, test for tuberculosis and perform routine child wellness checkups. Amber Stewart, the mental health professional at the Jones health center, sees about 35 children on a weekly basis.

The Jones Wellness Center staff includes a physician’s assistant, who collaborates with a doctor at the Community Clinic. Two medical assistants, a licensed clinical social worker and a bilingual administrative assistant also are on staff. The Community Clinic provides all of the staff members except for the social worker, who comes from Ozark Guidance.

The Jones Wellness Center recorded 660 patient visits during the fourth quarter of 2012, Miller said. It originally was in a renovated classroom, but the district added on to the front of the building to provide more space for it.

Elmdale and Parson Hills were chosen as the next health centers because of the high poverty rate among their students. Both schools have free and reduced-price lunch rates of more than 90 percent.

People who are at or below 200 percent of the poverty level qualify for discounts on medication and services offered through the Community Clinic and the health centers, said Kathy Grisham, director of the Community Clinic.

“We think it’s a wonderful way to deliver care to an underserved population,” Grisham said. “We’re really pleased Springdale has taken to this model so well.”

Students who need medical attention are less likely to miss school if they have access to a health clinic on campus, Miller said.

“Absenteeism is one of the major contributors to falling behind academically,” she said.

Another benefit of the school-based health center is parents don’t have to miss work to take their children to a doctor.

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