title: Barriers to school-based health care programs.
abstract: Although school-based health care programs (SBHCPs) provide affordable and accessible health care to children and adolescents and are known to improve school attendance, a variety of barriers affect their development. Focus groups were conducted in three schools in Louisiana to demonstrate how barriers can affect the initiation and development of SBHCPs. Each school-based program was in a different stage of development. Identifying potential barriers and developing strategies to overcome them can enhance already existing SBHCPs and make it easier for new programs to begin. The social worker serves as an important ally in the development of SBHCPs and is a necessary part of the school-based health care team.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Louisiana State University Medical Center, New Orleans 70112, USA. mstock@lsumc.edu
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Stock
authors.forename: E V
authors.initials: EV
authors.lastname: Morse
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Simon
authors.forename: P D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Zeanah
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Pratt
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sterne
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003256:Community Participation; D017144:Focus Groups; D006266:Health Education; D006285:Health Planning; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D007857:Leadership; D008145:Louisiana; D010290:Parents; D012424:Rural Population; D012572:School Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014505:Urban Population