SPARTA, Ga. — We've reported on the limited health resources available to people in Hancock County. The Hancock County School District and Community Health Care Systems cut the ribbon on their new school-based health clinic on Thursday. It's designed to improve children's well-being while in school.
This school-based health clinic is located in the Hancock County middle school but it's open for students, staff, and school board members. Regina Butts is the executive director for family connections-communities in schools of Hancock County.
She applied for a $10,000 grant from Emory University's School of Medicine to help fund this clinic. Butts says she has seen what limited healthcare resources look like in Hancock County and wanted to do something.
"In my heart, I knew that there were families who did not have access to health, and being able to provide a facility such as this has brought to this community another piece of healthcare services for our families and children in this community," Butts said.
The health clinic will provide a number of services. It will be a part of the 110 fully operational school-based clinics in Georgia. In August 2022, Governor Brian Kemp announced he would "supercharge" school-based health center programs. Meaning he would fund around $125 million to "help strengthen healthcare options for families across the state, including those in underserved and rural communities."
In central Georgia, there are seven school-based health programs in Bibb, Twiggs, Baldwin, Taylor, Hancock, Dooly, and Johnson County. The program addresses a variety of needs.
"I can do blood work, I can do just a regular check-up, I can do wellness exams for children, adults, immunizations, sports physicals, you name it we can do it," said Cassandra Price, a nurse practitioner with Community Health Care Systems.
In order to make this clinic possible they received help from the county government, the school district, and other healthcare entities. Lewis Elementary principal Anton Anthony hopes the clinic will improve school attendance in the Hancock school district.