School Based Health Center
Exciting News
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Exciting News |
Thanks to this research, the School-Based Health Center has successfully secured increased funding and expanded its reach by establishing a second location!
The study's findings and recommendations provided a robust foundation for advocating and implementing positive changes, ensuring enhanced healthcare access and services for students.
Overview
Brief
Facilitate user research for a school-based health center (SBHC), using a human centered lens to assess community needs, engagement, and accessibility. Coordinate with physicians, mental health professionals, teachers, parents, and students to identify the unique needs of people from differing cultures, backgrounds and abilities. Explore, present, and enact ideas to increase health and wellbeing through program development and service design.
My role
Lead Researcher and Designer
The team
Medical Director, SBHC Manager, District Communications Director, School Administration
Timeline
June 2022 - July 2023
Project Goals
Identify and learn about needs of students, parents and teachers in school/community.
Research similar programs and industry standards
Identify needs and processes of SBHC staff
Look at areas of redundancy and possibilities for growth
Identify ways potential clients find and utilize services
Devise means to provide information and access to those who have not previously used SBHC services but who are interested in them.
Hypothesis & Findings Summary
We expected people to say they don't use the SBHC because it does not offer services they need or that the schedule/location does not meet their specific needs.
We learned that students and parents don’t use the SBHC because they:
don't know what it offers
don't know how to access it
don't know if they are eligible
don't know what cost or health insurance is required
We learned that teachers don't refer student to the SBHC because they:
don't know what it offers
don't know the protocol
don't know who is eligible
don't know when parental consent/other paperwork is needed
Recommendations Summary
Clear and comprehensive communication strategy to initially inform and keep parents, students and teachers updated about the SBHC
Create a tool (such as a flow chart or infographic) to clarify the services offered , eligibility and the referral process
Develop collaborative partnerships with groups inside and outside the school (such as the athletic dept, coaches, local mental health orgs, etc) with the intention of engaging students who might not otherwise know about or use the SBHC
Continue facilitating presentations, workshops and orientations that inform parents, teachers, and students about the health center's offerings
Use student ambassadors and peer education programs to educate students about the health center's services
Implement surveys and feedback mechanisms to gauge the awareness of and satisfaction with the health center's services
Explore ways to use the website, student/teacher portals and social media. Specifically, ways to add more information about what services are offered and how to access them
Research
I began this research by assessing existing information about school based health centers and similar community health programs.
Then I moved into generative and exploratory research conducting individual interviews with students, parents, staff and experts, taking care to engage with a diverse group of people who accurately reflect the school’s population.
All students, parents and teachers were also invited to fill out a survey.
24 Interviews
9 Staff | 5 Parents | 10 Students
3 Surveys
Sent out across the school District
Parents, Staff and Students from all District 207 High Schools were invited to participate in live, one on one Interviews about their experiences as well as Surveys geared toward each group
Interviews
From December 2022 - March 2023, we held 24 individual interviews with teachers, parents, students.
These interviews were facilitated in a person-centered style, allowing the participant’s to share their experiences and thoughts about the SBHC as they felt comfortable.
Surveys
After the interviews were complete, surveys were sent out to the entire school district with the intention of exploring themes from the interviews with a larger group of participants.
Research Objectives
Identify and learn about needs of students, parents and teachers in school/community as related to SBHC
Learn what services would benefit students, parents, teachers the most
Learn how people find services offered at SBHC
Explore community awareness of the SBHC (teacher, student, parent)
Learn about pain points and challenges people experience when looking for and scheduling services at the SBHC
Look at areas of redundancy and possibilities for growth
Generate ideas to provide information and access to those who have not previously used SBHC services but who are interested in them
Findings
Overview
People love the School Based Health Center and think that it is an excellent resource
People who know about it and have used it are surprised that more people don't use it
People were only confident about the services they had actually used and did not know the extent or details about other services
People frequently asked in the interviews "oh, do they offer such and such? That would be so great"
When asked what other services they wished the SBHC offer, people often listed services that are already offered at SBHC or declined to answer because they said they weren’t sure what was already offered
There was a general desire to have quick and clear references about what is available from SBHC, who can use the services and how they can be accessed
Parents, teachers and students all called out the need for mental health care
Many teachers, parents and students said they learned about the SBHC through the athletic programs and sports physicals
Convenience was seen as a significant benefit to parents and students
Access to low cost or free services was seen as a significant benefit to parents and students
Development of life skills and comfort level with seeking out medical care was seen as a benefit to students