| Learning Objective #1: Explore the opportunities and issues of partnering organizations in a school-based health care setting | |||
| Learning Objective #2: Strategize with community-based agencies in providing learning experiences for nursing students to their mutual benefit |
School-based health centers (SBHCs) began as access points for health care services for children and adolescents, many of whom had no medical home, were uninsured, or lacked transportation for medical services. The growth of Louisiana SBHCs occurred at a remarkable rate with eight presently operating in East Baton Rouge Parish. In 2000-2001, 4704 students (90%) attending schools with SBHCs had the requisite parental consent for health services. Nearly three-fourths (70%) of these students used a SBHC in the last year, with 59% having three or more visits. Students seek services for acute illness and injury, chronic disease management, physical examinations, and for mental health issues. Typically, students see a nurse, or nurse practitioner depending on the nature of the complaint. Nurses gather health information and screen students for referrals to multidisciplinary staff. In 1997, the SBHCs began to change their focus to a different outcome measurement for ascertaining the success of their services, namely the prevention and early intervention of risk-taking behavior. Guidelines for Adolescent Preventive Services (GAPS) and associated risk assessment tools are used to prevent, identify, or provide early intervention for risk-taking behaviors.
Through leveraging resources, both the SBHCs and the Southeastern Louisiana University School of Nursing derive benefit. The SBHCs provide an excellent environment for unique learning opportunities for undergraduate and graduate nursing students in caring for youth at school. Nursing students implement physical assessments, assist with GAP assessments, and implement creative, age-appropriate teaching projects in conjunction with the targeted health risks of the individual school. The SBHCs thereby receive supplemental unpaid human resources and support to meet their identified interventions and goals to promote the physical and mental health of their students. Although each program receives beneficial outcomes, the primary result of this collaboration is keeping kids in school and parents at work!
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