In-school clinics improve well-being and educational outcomes and serve children who need them most
After more than two years of disrupted lessons during the pandemic, it's clearer than ever that schools are more than just places to learn: they are vital safe spaces for students to build friendships, receive nourishing meals and talk to trusted adults. And they can be more—schools can also provide health care.
The pandemic was hard on existing school-based health centers, and as we reckon with lost years of education, it's time for government at all levels to recognize that all children need accessible and affordable health care.
Delivering health care through schools has been shown to improve kids' physical well-being and educational outcomes. A 2005 study in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that after health centers opened in U.S. public schools, their students' risk of hospitalization for asthma went down 2.4-fold, and their trips to the emergency room for asthma decreased by 33.5 percent.