Turner SBHC Makes National News
Print This PostNationally syndicated news program “America Now” recently featured a story on Tift Regional Medical Center’s telemedicine program with Turner County Schools in Ashburn.
The story shows how parents and children living in a rural Georgia community will no longer have to miss work or school to travel out of town to the nearest pediatrician. Thanks to telemedicine and a School-Based Health Clinic (SBHC), students at Turner County Elementary don’t even have to leave school to see the doctor.
“Turner County Connection-Communities In Schools of Turner County is the driving force behind the School-Based Health Clinic (SBHC),” said Lisa Kingry, Turner County Connection executive director. “Health initiatives have always been one of our big strategies. We have an active and long sustaining health strategy team—Rural Health Network—that meets monthly and serves as the SBHC coalition.”
The Georgia Family Connection Collaborative received a $10,000 planning grant from Emory University in 2010 and spent a year assessing the needs in the community as they relate to health and health disparities, then developed a SBHC Business plan.
Tift Regional Hospital funded the clinic in spring 2012 by purchasing the Telehealth Cart and other clinic equipment and supplies. The clinic also received a federal Capital Equipment grant in December to purchase equipment for all three school sites.
“We hope to have all three clinics up and running by September, said Kingry. “We also plan to provide teledentistry by a pediatric dentist in Tifton in the fall.”