Funded Projects

Alaska School Access via Pediatric Telemedicine

Project Year

2023

City & State

Ketchikan, Alaska

Program Name

CATCH Implementation

Topic

Telehealth/Telemedicine

Program Description

Problem: In Alaska access to pediatric providers for evaluation and treatment of acute illnesses and injuries is limited by geographic, socioeconomic and cultural barriers. School nurses across the state, especially in rural communities, have limited direct access to pediatric providers when sick or injured children present at school. Children are often sent home with a parent or guardian only to return to school the following day without resolution of their symptoms or a care plan. Alaska's geography and weather often inhibit families from traveling to seek care for children, and risk factors associated with poverty, racial and ethnic disparities, and education further inhibit access to care. Due to these access barriers children miss more school days than necessary which affects their ability to be successful in school. Objective and goals: Connecting school nurses via telemedicine with board certified pediatric providers will increase access to care by allowing evaluation of ill and injured children at school. Parents will also be given the opportunity bia the same telemedicine platform to connect with a pediatric provider, receive written discharge instructions and care planning in their language, and follow up virtually as needed. Decreasing delays in care will also improve school attendance and ultimately increase children's ability to be successful in school.

Project Goal

The goal of Alaska School Access is to plan a school-based telemedicine program that will provide access to pediatric care via telehealth and to promote the health, well-being and academic success of children in remote and rural communities in Alaska.

Project Objective 1

Facilitate the ability of school nurses and other key officials to connect virtually via telemedicine with board certified pediatric providers in order to increase access to pediatric care by allowing faster evaluation and treatment of ill and injured children with the goal of having at least 20 pediatric provider contacts by Nov 2023.

Project Objective 2

Facilitate the ability of parents and families of children to connect with pediatric clinicians in Alaska via the same telemedicine platform, receive written discharge instructions and care planning, and access education about the importance of children's health and how to access resources.

Project Objective 3

To evaluate how decreasing delays in care will improve school attendance and ultimately improve students' academic success evidenced by at least a 5% increase in school attendance at 4 schools by November 2023.

AAP District

District VIII

Institutional Name

Telemedicine

Contact 1

Jennifer Austin

Contact 2

Sheryl Cohen