Photo: Areawide Media
Left to right: St. Bernard’s Vice President of Physician Services John Lieblong, Highland Schools Superintendent Don Sharp, and Hope Behavioral Health’s Dr. John Bokker.
The Highland School District, under the leadership of Superintendent Don Sharp, has been awarded a grant to open a school-based health clinic. Sharp is the former superintendent of Cotter Schools.
Areawide Media newspaper of Salem reports Highland district officials held a press conference last week to announce the school’s partnership with St. Bernard’s Healthcare of Jonesboro and Hope Behavioral Health of Cherokee Village to open the clinic.
Sharp said at the press conference the grant of approximately $540,000 over a five-year period is from the Arkansas Department of Education and the Arkansas Department of Health.
He said it is the districts position healthy kids are better students and ultimately better citizens, saying this is the first step in helping the students to easily access healthcare.
Sharp said initially, the partnership with the medical providers will bring healthcare services to Highland students, along with mental health services. Down the road, they hope to be able to include dental and vision services.
At a previous school board meeting, approval was given to purchase the former Pillbox Cafe and Pharmacy in Highland when there was just a possibility of a school-based health clinic. The board then voted to purchase the Garner Medical Clinic building adjacent to the school.
The school district plans to re-purpose the old Pillbox Cafe and Pharmacy for its alternative education program learning area, with potential for additional uses and growth as needs arise.
The Garner Medical Clinic will have a student health center on one side and a community health clinic in the same building. The facility will be staffed with APRNs and PAs, as well as a full nursing component and clinical and front office staff.
Hope Behavioral Health will be providing therapists, case managers, a nurse, a psychiatrist and a nurse practitioner for the mental health component.
Sharp said the hope is the clinic will be self-sustaining when grant funding has been exhausted.
The clinic is expected to be operational later this year.
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