Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2016 - 4
hospitalrounds
POPULATION HEALTH
Double teaming
Hospitals and schools are joining together for healthier patients.
I
n pursuit of improved children's health care, some hospitals
have developed partnerships with local school districts to
standardize care across environments and provide health
services to all students. "Long ago, school nursing was known for
Band-Aids and ice packs, and that is not the case anymore," says
Michele Wilmoth, M.S.N., director of nursing for School Health
Services at Akron Children's Hospital. "The amount of health care
delivered in schools is often unrecognized." In a 2015 CHA survey,
51 percent of respondents
indicated their hospital had
a "formal partnership" with
early education or child care.
The National Association
of School Nurses says 83
percent of school nurses are
funded by departments of
education. Dell Children's
Medical Center of Central
Texas, an Ascension hospital,
and Akron Children's have
partnerships with local
schools, allowing for better
care coordination and
ensuring school readiness.
In 2004, Akron Children's
merged with a private
company called Schoolhouse
Network and contracted with districts to provide school nurses,
health management plans; education for students, parents
and school employees; and other health services. The hospital
currently serves 26 school districts and 7,600 children.
The program provides outreach with efforts like Kohl's Fit
Kids, which educates kids about exercise and nutrition, and other
programs that focus on puberty and handwashing. The hospital
also provides flu vaccines on the schools' campuses and social and
emotional learning programs. These efforts reached 9,665 people
in the 2014-15 year. "Research shows that increased physical,
social and emotional wellbeing results in improved academic
performance," says Wilmoth. "Our school health program
provides student and family centered care for the whole child."
Dell Children's formed a partnership with Austin Independent
School District (ISD) in 1995 when financial trouble led the
district to consider eliminating school nurses, and the hospital
stepped in to fill the need. Stephen Pont, M.D., medical director
for Austin ISD Student Health Services and Dell Children's,
4
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL S TODAY Summer 2016
says a major accomplishment as a result of this partnership
was increasing immunization rates to nearly 100 percent. "It's
an ongoing process," Pont says. "People move in and out of the
district, so we have to actively manage that."
The partnership also resulted in behavioral health
professionals on 12 campuses through a Medicaid waiver
program, an EpiPens in schools program and a roving pediatric
health care van. The van supported 1,121 health care visits
in 2015 for uninsured and
Medicaid-insured students.
Staff provide a wide range of
services from prenatal care
to sports physicals. Teachers
also work in the hospital to
help patients stay on track
academically.
Both organizations see the
benefits of care coordination
between hospitals and
schools, which fosters the
development of health plans
for chronic diseases. "We
provide a bridge between
health and academics,
working directly with the
medical providers and the
schools to ensure the child's
health plan is being carried out at school," Wilmoth says.
Managing the health of students with chronic diseases like
asthma-the leading cause of school absenteeism-and diabetes
allows students to have more time in the classroom and results
in fewer hospital visits. Personalized care plans help with quality
of life. This type of customized plan allowed Pont to work with
a student with a terminal condition "He was receiving palliative
care, and he, his family and the student health services team
wanted to make sure he was present at his graduation," Pont says.
A care plan made that possible.
Partnerships strengthen the health care-education continuum,
heighten brand awareness, help with injury and illness
prevention and allow for convenient care. "Children spend six
hours or more at school, so where better to impact health?"
Wilmoth says. -Kaitie Marolf
Send questions or comments to
magazine@childrenshospitals.org.
childrenshospital s.org
http://www.childrenshospitals.org
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2016
Contents
Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2016 - Cover1
Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2016 - Cover2
Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2016 - Contents
Children's Hospitals Today - Summer 2016 - 2
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