Tag Archive for: Dooley

kids running to school

New School-Friendly Health Systems Framework supports children’s health and learning

kids running to schoolWith school back in session and students, educators and health care workers still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is critical for the health and education sectors to align efforts and drive innovative programs and policy change efforts to address the needs of children.

With input from expert stakeholders, including pediatricians, educators, school administrators, school nurses, parents and community health experts, Children’s National led the development of a School-Friendly Health System (SFHS) framework that is based on lessons learned from nationally recognized baby-friendly hospitals and age-friendly health systems initiatives. Becoming school-friendly means that hospitals and health systems have made a commitment to actively help children achieve optimal health and reach their full academic potential.

The big picture

Given the fundamental interrelation of health and education, hospitals and health care organizations need a holistic framework to guide their school partnerships and other efforts to make a positive impact on patient and family engagement, health care costs, health outcomes and, ideally, patients’ learning experience. For hospitals and health systems, partnering with schools in their local service area will not only improve service delivery to the students receiving care from the health system but will help strengthen health outcomes and overall student performance.

Children’s National Hospital leads the way

Eight health care organizations and partners, led by Desiree de la Torre, M.P.H., M.B.A., Julia DeAngelo, M.P.H., and Danielle Dooley, M.D., M.Phil., of the Child Health Advocacy Institute (CHAI) through executive support of Tonya Kinlow, M.P.A., and Nathaniel Beers, M.D., M.P.A., at Children’s National and with support from RESOLVE (a Washington, D.C., -based nonprofit based specializing in collaborative process design), have formed to update the SFHS framework that was first released in 2021. The Collaborative includes interdisciplinary health care professionals who have been leading and coordinating early childhood and K-12 school health initiatives across the nation.

The SFHS framework includes five principles that reflect a broad range of competencies, practices, and policy positions that health care and school health experts and stakeholders view as emblematic of a SFHS – some already practiced, some aspirational:

School friendly health sysems infographic

A few significant updates to the framework include embedding the “All Touchpoints Approach” principle across the framework and adding an “Alignment” principle. Other changes included modifying the wording of the Accessibility and Accountability principles and adding a few new practices.

What’s next

The Collaborative is now focusing on developing tools to support implementation. Through securing additional funding, the Collaborative will evaluate how the adoption of the SFHS framework across diverse settings has strengthened the healthcare sector’s relationships with schools, students and families and ability to improve health and academic outcomes.

Read the full study at childrensnational.org/school-friendly For more information on the SFHS Learning Collaborative, contact School Partnerships@childrensnational.org.

Little boy going to school with protective mask

Pandemic recovery for kids goes well beyond keeping schools open

Little boy going to school with protective maskThe impact virtual school had on kids goes well beyond academics, say Children’s National Hospital experts in a new JAMA Pediatrics editorial. From the beginning of the pandemic, new data shows that school closures for in-person learning led to:

  • School disengagement
  • Mental health challenges
  • Unhealthy weight gain
  • Food insecurity
  • Immunization delay
  • An increase in cases of new-onset Type 2 diabetes

“The toll that school closures and social isolation has had on kid’s mental health cannot be overstated,” says Danielle Dooley, M.D., M.Phil., medical director of Community Affairs and Population Health in the Child Health Advocacy Institute at Children’s National Hospital. “As the latest Omicron wave has shown, these discussions are not behind us. We must continue to fully weigh how each decision can impact the lives of children.”

She collaborated with other Children’s National experts in the new editorial. They discussed how Viner et al. — a study appearing in the same issue — present an important review of the impacts of school closures. The researchers urge a balance between measures to contain COVID-19 and to support the physical and mental health of kids.

“The events and influences in childhood and adolescence have long-lasting impacts on the health and well-being of youth,” says Dr. Dooley.

Danielle Dooley

In a new editorial, Dr. Dooley et al. stress the importance of children remaining the focus of the ongoing pandemic and recovery.

Looking at the prospect of COVID-19 becoming endemic in our communities, Dr. Dooley stressed the importance of continually assessing the impact of the pandemic on youth. This includes the impact of the pandemic on education, health care access and disparities, family stress and functioning, among others.

In the editorial, Dr. Dooley et al. say changes need to be made at the practice, research, policy, systems and school infrastructure level. They write that while children are resilient, that resiliency requires systemic support, investment and more research into the short-, medium-, and long-term impacts on kids.

Children’s National Hospital continues to be a leader in addressing these impacts. From clinical care to partnerships and collaboration with local school systems and community-based organizations, Children’s National takes a holistic approach to the needs of children and families. Additionally, with funding from the United Health Foundation, Children’s National has deployed its Mobile Medical Unit. The clinic meets families where they are, in their communities, to deliver immunization services and comprehensive well visits to children and adolescents.

Hope Rhodes, M.D., M.P.H., medical director for the Mobile Medical Program at Children’s National, says, “This is a critical part of the pandemic response, both to ensure children do not fall further behind in immunizations and to provide additional access point options for families to receive immunizations.”

happy children running with kite

Children’s National receives United Health Foundation grant

happy children running with kite

The grant enables a unique program – bringing together a team of school nurses in D.C. Public Schools, community health workers and mobile medical services.

The United Health Foundation, the philanthropic foundation of UnitedHealth Group, has awarded a three-year, $3.4 million grant to Children’s National Hospital to improve access to health care for school-aged children in Washington, D.C.’s most under-resourced communities. The support is part of the United Health Foundation’s ongoing commitment to build healthier communities and advance health equity.

The grant enables a unique program – bringing together a team of school nurses in D.C. Public Schools, community health workers and mobile medical services. Wards 7 and 8 face some of the largest health inequities in Washington, D.C., with high rates of child poverty, asthma, obesity and more.

“Children’s National has long worked to make sure every child in our region has access to high-quality care,” said Kurt Newman, M.D., president and CEO of Children’s National. “This new grant from the United Health Foundation will help us create another way to connect our pediatric experts with children and families who are not currently being served by health care providers. We are committed to helping children lead healthier lives which, in turn, makes them more likely to succeed in school and lead healthier lives as adults.”

School nurses employed by Children’s School Services will work with community health workers to connect children and families to mobile health services, Children’s National primary care locations and federally qualified health centers. Health records, immunization records and attendance data will be accessible through data sharing. As a result of the effort, children will receive well-child visits, including vaccinations and vision, hearing, behavioral health and developmental screenings. Additionally, via telemedicine, community health workers can link children to specialists to address behavioral health, asthma and other pressing health needs.

“Reaching school-aged children living in under-resourced communities to provide important routine health care can be challenging, especially amid a pandemic,” said Dr. Margaret-Mary Wilson, associate chief medical officer for UnitedHealth Group. “We are so pleased to be working with Children’s National on this innovative and comprehensive program to identify and close gaps in care — especially for those who have unaddressed needs.”

The effort aims to reduce school absenteeism among chronically absent students by connecting families to health supports and social services. It will also focus on increasing the number of children who are up to date on vaccinations, with a goal of providing 6,000 vaccinations over three years. Additionally, those who screen positive for mental or behavioral health issues will be referred to mental health specialists. The program is under the leadership of Hope Rhodes, M.D., M.P.H., medical director of THEARC, and one of the leaders of the Goldberg Center, and Danielle Dooley, M.D., M.Phil., medical director, Community Affairs and Population Health of the Child Health Advocacy Institute.

The grant will help address challenges identified in the Foundation’s recently released America’s Health Rankings 2021 Health of Women and Children Report. Some of the key findings of the report were:

  • Anxiety among children ages 3-17 rose 21% nationally between 2017-2018 and 2019-2020, from 7.5% to 9.1%.
  • Only 1 in 3 (34.3%) U.S. fourth grade public school students scored proficient or above on the national reading assessment. Later in life, there is a strong connection between education attainment and health, with those without a high school education facing the greatest social, economic and health challenges. National reading assessments are an important marker in educational development.
  • The prevalence of asthma among children in D.C. is 10%, higher than the national average of 7.5%.
  • On-time childhood vaccinations in D.C. are 75.3%, slightly lower than the national average of 75.8%.

The grant is one of the many ways the United Health Foundation continues to support efforts to build healthier communities and advance health equity. In September, UnitedHealth Group, including the United Health Foundation and UnitedHealthcare, announced a donation of $4.5 million to seven nonprofit organizations in Oklahoma to help increase health care, improve health outcomes and support communities across the state. And in July, the United Health Foundation established a $3.3 million grant partnership with the North Olympic Healthcare Network in Washington state to improve behavioral health for children and adults in the Port Angeles area. To learn more about UnitedHealth Group’s commitment to health equity, please visit the company’s sustainability website at sustainability.uhg.com.