SALT LAKE COUNTY, Utah — The Canyons School District is looking to combat chronic absenteeism within their schools.
It’s a nationwide post-COVID problem that they’ve felt acutely, as 32 percent of their students missed more than 10 percent of the 2023-24 school year.
Their website shows the district’s enrollment sits at around 33,000 students, meaning there were approximately 10,500 chronically absent children. So collectively, those students missed at least 190,000 days of education in the last academic year.
But school leaders and health officials hope they’ve found an answer - school-based telehealth services provided by Intermountain Health.
Elementary student Madison Brown knows how it can affect her mom, Karen when she gets sick.
“She had to come pick me up and get out of work from a meeting,” said Madison.
Those visits to the nurse’s office often end up causing headaches for more than just the patient.
“You leave work as fast as you can and you get here,” said Karen Brown. “Then, it’s the process of trying to schedule a doctor’s appointment or take them to an InstaCare.”
Jennifer Gerrard is a school nurse specialist at Canyons. She says that process could keep a student home for several days.
“There are so many times when we’re kind of left a little bit helpless like we can’t do as much for a student as we wish we could,” said Jennifer.
To alleviate absenteeism, they partnered with Intermountain Health starting in September so that students could see a doctor before they even leave the school.
“When a child comes into the office, they get triaged to basically determine whether they are appropriate for a telehealth call,” said Amy Back, who directs the pediatric telehealth program at Intermountain Health. “If they are, the school nurse reaches out to the parent and gets that consent.”
Through the pilot program, 17 schools in the district are offering immediate care for a list of ailments, from strep throat to ear infections.
“If your child is diagnosed with an illness that needs a prescription, the provider can send that to your preferred pharmacy,” Back said.
What if you’re too busy to make your child’s appointment in person? Officials say the Connect Care providers can send you, the parent, a link as well. With the click of a button - you’re on the call right alongside your child.
“It just makes everything more seamless,” said Back.
The Connect Care technology allows nurses to work alongside these providers - sharing important information like blood pressure, strep throat tests and even photos of the child’s illness.
“Looking in her ear’s not something I thought I was going to be able to do either,” said Brown.
Karen Brown says she’s just one of many very busy parents who will benefit from having this “virtual urgent care” built right in to their school system.
“To get it done at the school where they and I feel comfortable with the care they’re getting is phenomenal,” Brown added.
Teachers and other staff members can also receive telehealth services at the district offices in Sandy. For those who don’t have health insurance, a connect care visit costs 69 dollars. However, officials say financial assistance for the service is available.
Intermountain Health also noted that a similar test of the program in the Wasatch school district saved an estimated 5,500 days of education during the 2023-2024 school year.
