Redesigning the rural health care model has伟德betvicror下载going back to school in LaSalle County, Illinois.
As OSF HealthCare works to improve access to services for rural communities and focuses on preventative health, it has turned to the community itself for help, building partnerships with local schools. Education, after all, is vital to the health of a community.
“We’re looking to improve the health status of the whole community and realizing it’s very difficult for us to do this alone,” said Don Damron, vice president of ambulatory services forOSF HealthCare Center for Health – Streator. “Forming partnerships is a more effective way to go about it.”
Collaboration with the schools not only provides an opportunity to connect with students, it also allows opportunities to connect with families. Efforts also reach faculty and staff and members of the community that interact with the school or attend events.
Planting the seeds of a lasting impact
花几均学校与当地的合作伙伴关系nt approaches to serve the community’s younger generation with the goal of creating a healthier today and tomorrow. OSF HealthCare is providing education that aligns with the recognized needs of the community, like healthy behaviors and behavioral health.
An OSF HealthCare advanced practice provider has begun providing a presentation at area schools to teach students about therisks of vaping– a growing trend among young people.
Orthopedic specialistsfrom OSF Medical Group practices inMendota,OttawaandStreatorare partnering to provide schools with athletic training services andsports physical clinicsfor their student-athletes. They’re also offering things likeconcussion careand weekend injury clinics.
OSF HealthCare physicians and staff also travel to schools to train staff and faculty on things like performingcardiopulmonary resuscitation, how to use anautomated external defibrillatorand how to engage emergency responders during medical emergencies at schools. These initiatives, along with efforts to assist with the review of response procedures, optimizes the school readiness for medical events.
Preparing for the unexpected
The OSF HealthCare disaster preparedness team is also providingStop the Bleedtraining to staff atOttawa Township High Schoolin February. The grant-funded program trains people on techniques for bleeding control that can save lives, like packing wounds and applying tourniquets. It also provides bleeding control equipment to organizations like local first responders.
“If anybody makes a request for training, we teach anyone, anywhere,” said Troy Erbentraut, disaster preparedness manager for OSF HealthCare. “If we can train people on how to stop bleeding, it helps us as a health care provider and gives us more opportunity to treat patients who are injured in a disaster.”
As OSF HealthCare continues to identify health needs in the community, new partnerships and programs will serve those needs.
Contact your localOSF HealthCare facilityor your local school to learn more about educational opportunities.
Last Updated: June 25, 2019