Published on November 02, 2011

Dean Health System Partners with Local Schools in the Name of Wellness

Partnership Helps Connect More Children with Providers

Dean Health Plan, Dean Clinic, and the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) join forces to improve access to health care for students who are Medicaid eligible during the 2011-2012 school year. 

Since 1998, the Dean Health System and MMSD Health Check Partnership have worked to connect children with their primary care providers. Children who might not normally get to the doctor’s office as regularly as they should are able to receive important preventative health measures, such as vaccinations and regular checkups, through the program.

“Not only does it connect more children with providers, but the program also helps MMSD to accomplish a Health Services mission by facilitating the engagement of families with their health care provider,” says Freddi Adelson, MS, RN, Health Services Coordinator for MMSD.  She adds that through this collaborative effort, students who are Medicaid eligible and members of a Dean Health Plan may establish a health care “home” and receive recommended preventive health care. 

MMSD School Nurses provide outreach and coordinate weekly clinics at elementary schools on Monday afternoons. In addition to the Monday clinics, Dean Health Plan, Dean Clinic and MMSD nurses provide evening Health Check Clinics at several locations to help enable working parents and parents with multiple children to receive preventive care for all of their children at one time. 

“Since the beginning of this project, the rate of DHP children using the health check has shown an increase of 63.2%,” says Jaime Prickett, government programs education-outreach coordinator for Dean Health Plan. “The partnership is important because students receive necessary health care, and once the relationship with a physician is initiated, families use their health care provider for any problems that may arise.”

Adelson notes that the project has improved the health check completion rate for area children and has likely contributed to improved school attendance.  She cites one example of an eighth grade student who hadn't been seen for three years, and was scheduled into an evening clinic, and received needed vaccines, weight/exercise counseling and had a WIAA card filled out for participation in school sports. Additionally, a pair of brothers seen at one of the clinics received valuable asthma education, an improved asthma medication plan and benefited from having more time with their Dean provider.

"This partnership with Dean gives school nurses another tool in their toolbox,” Adelson says.  “They can now connect families with primary health care. This valuable connection contributes to improved health and ultimately to academic achievement.”