Cone Health Adds Remote Therapy To School Telehealth Program

By Jennifer Fernandez

Greensboro-based Cone Health is expanding its school-based telehealth programme to connection distant intelligence wellness services for nan first time.

Students struggling pinch anxiety, slump aliases different intelligence aliases behavioral wellness issues tin beryllium connected to a therapist during nan schoolhouse day, said John Jenkins, aesculapian head of Cone Health School-Based Care. The services will beryllium akin to Cone Health’s telehealth programme for beingness health, wherever a expert aliases caregiver practitioner tin remotely analyse a student pinch nan thief of a certified aesculapian adjunct and exertion that transmits accusation successful existent time.

Jenkins said they’re adding behavioral wellness services because schoolhouse officials saw a need.

“We’ve seen a important number of students who are predominant presenters,” he said, adding that nan beingness complaints that bring students to school-based clinics successful 3 Piedmont Triad schoolhouse systems often are connected to thing other that is causing them stress.

The astir commonly diagnosed intelligence disorders successful children ages 5 to 17 are worry problems, behaviour disorders and depression, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Psychologist Emily Odjaghian said that investigation shows anywhere betwixt 40 percent and 90 percent of intelligence wellness issues knowledgeable successful adolescence tin beryllium identified successful early childhood.

“We person to prosecute successful nan benignant of resources and curen and screening that tin place and thief these children earlier there’s a crisis,” said Odjaghian, who is executive head of nan Lucy Daniels Center, a nonprofit intelligence wellness supplier successful Cary.

Telepsychiatry

In nan U.S., astatine slightest 1 successful six children ages 6 to 17 experience a mental wellness upset each year, according to nan National Alliance connected Mental Illness. 

To amended scope children who are struggling, a increasing number of programs are providing telepsychiatry successful North Carolina schools.

Cone Health’s programme will beryllium piloted astatine Alderman Elementary School successful Greensboro, Jenkins said. Montlieu and Union Hill simple schools successful High Point, Moss Street Elementary successful Reidsville and Hillcrest Elementary successful Burlington are expected to beryllium added later successful nan schoolhouse year. All are high-poverty schools that person students connected waitlists to person intelligence aliases behavioral wellness services, Jenkins said.  

“We will person a slow rollout, and we dream to, by nan extremity of our rollout, beryllium successful each schoolhouse that we person beingness health,” Jenkins said.

Students will beryllium capable to person therapy sessions successful school, pinch a organization attraction worker coming to thief nan supplier who is connected remotely. Jenkins said Cone Health is besides partnering pinch Duke University Health System-based NC Pediatric Access Line, which provides intelligence wellness consultation and acquisition to North Carolina objective and societal work providers.

“There person been tons of studies to show really effective little therapeutic encounters are to woody pinch immoderate of nan puerility trauma issues and puerility behavioral issues,” he said.

The organization attraction worker besides handles scheduling and tin guarantee that sessions minimally effect a student’s acquisition time, Jenkins said. They tin besides activity pinch nan family to find retired if location are barriers, specified arsenic finances aliases transportation, preventing nan kid from getting attraction aliases that could beryllium affecting nan child’s intelligence aliases beingness health. The organization attraction workers tin make referrals to support services to thief nan family. 

Teachers tin besides activity pinch nan organization attraction workers to thief students successful class. For example, a student who is taught heavy breathing to thief calm worry whitethorn request a reminder erstwhile they go anxious during class, Jenkins said. The organization attraction worker tin instruct nan coach connected really to do that.

“So that organization attraction worker has a domiciled successful nan visit, a domiciled successful nan schoolhouse and a domiciled successful nan community, which is simply a really unsocial deployment successful this environment,” Jenkins said. “So we’re really excited astir that.”

Combatting chronic absenteeism

Cone Health’s school-based telehealth programme started successful 2021 pinch a aviator programme successful Bessemer Elementary School successful Greensboro. It officially kicked disconnected successful 2022 pinch a fistful of sites successful Guilford County. With nan summation of 12 sites this year, it has grown to 40 schools crossed 3 counties.

Parents person to supply consent for their children to beryllium seen astatine nan clinics. A supplier gets pulled successful for cases specified arsenic an earache, upset stomach, injuries and colds, for example. Minor issues, specified arsenic headaches, are handled connected tract by nan certified aesculapian assistant.

Of nan sites added this world year, 10 are successful Guilford County Schools, and location is 1 each successful nan Rockingham County and Alamance-Burlington schoolhouse systems. 

For Guilford County Schools, nan extremity is to beryllium successful each of nan high-poverty simple schools to scope nan astir at-risk students, Jenkins said. 

Health advocates opportunity that school-based telehealth attraction cuts down connected absenteeism, ensures that students person regular attraction that they mightiness not different beryllium capable to access, and tin moreover boost trial scores.

“Chronic absenteeism is endemic successful nan United States,” Jenkins said. “[Students] miss excessively overmuch school.” 

Statewide, 24.96 percent of students were chronically absent successful 2023-24, according to nan North Carolina School Report Cards. Chronic absenteeism is defined arsenic missing 10 percent aliases much of days successful a schoolhouse twelvemonth for immoderate reason.

A certified aesculapian adjunct useful pinch a student astatine Washington Montessori Elementary successful Greensboro. The schoolhouse was 1 of nan first successful Guilford County Schools to adhd telehealth services for students. The programme has expanded to different 10 schools successful nan territory for nan 2025-26 schoolhouse year. Credit: Chris English / Tigermoth Creative

For Guilford County Schools, 30.89 percent of students were chronically absent that schoolhouse year. It was higher successful Alamance-Burlington (32.06 percent) and Rockingham County (33.30 percent). 

Missing excessively overmuch schoolhouse not only puts students astatine consequence of dropping out, it besides puts them astatine consequence for unhealthy behaviors, specified arsenic intoxicant and supplier use, and mediocre semipermanent wellness outcomes, according to nan American Academy of Pediatrics. Not graduating precocious schoolhouse is associated pinch accrued mortality consequence aliases little life expectancy, research shows.

Jenkins said that 90 percent of students who participate successful a telehealth convention return to people that day.

Guilford County Schools officials person seen improved attendance astatine each of nan participating schools, according to information shared earlier this twelvemonth astatine a convention connected telehealth successful schools.

In different move to grow services and support students successful class, nan clinics are looking to connection on-site testing this autumn for nan flu, COVID-19 and strep — communal contagious illnesses. 

Providing this testing will let students whose results are antagonistic to return to people alternatively of going location to hold for a doctor’s appointment, Jenkins said.

“Again, it’s each astir attendance,” he said. “If children tin acquisition schoolhouse to nan maximum amount, we cognize that their accomplishment will beryllium higher, their probability to postgraduate will beryllium higher, their expertise to summation nan devices to fulfill their imaginable is higher — and that’s what our attraction is.”

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