CLEVELAND – The White County Board of Education recently approved the establishment of a School-Based Health Center. This program is a collaborative effort of White County Family Connection, Medlink, and White County Schools. SBHCs are health clinics located in schools that provide preventive and primary care to students.
Services provided are determined by the community but most often include health education, treatment of acute illnesses, management of chronic illnesses, and mental health services.
The services provided at the centers require a parent’s signature before a student can be served.
The White County School-Based Health Center will be located on the campus of White County High School in the former Warrior Academy building. It will be operated by MedLink Georgia and will be staffed by fully qualified healthcare providers and support staff.
Trisha Jones, Director of Clinical Services with Medlink, said they will be working in the next couple of weeks getting the building set up for a health clinic.
Mark Griffin, White County Family Connection Coordinator, said there are over 100 of these health centers operating in Georgia, but White County is the first to offer the service in our region.
The Georgia Department of Education is providing a grant to cover necessary renovations to the building and MedLink Georgia has obtained a federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration to assist with other start-up costs. Over time, the SBHC will become financially self-supporting through reimbursement for services. As a federally qualified health center, MedLink serves patients on a sliding scale and is committed to serving uninsured and underinsured patients as well as those who have insurance of various forms.
“We are going to focus a lot on the students, but this is also available to our teachers and parents in the community,” says Jones.
Additional details about the program will be made available by the school system as the new school year begins.
