October 5, 2012
Hannah Chilton has questions about her career plans, while many of her high school classmates have questions about health-related issues.
For answers, they all go to the same person: public health nurse Miriam Bowes, who has been permanently stationed at Peace Country’s biggest high school, Grande Prairie Composite, for more than a year as part of an Alberta Health Services (AHS) pilot project.
“It’s great having Miriam here at the school,” says the 16-year-old Hannah, who aspires to be a surgeon. “When I walked by Miriam’s office, she’s usually busy with students. It’s nice to get answers and advice right here at the school, from someone we like and trust.”
Now students at three additional Peace Country high schools will be able to access the expertise of a public health nurse on campus as the pilot project expands.
Three schools – Peace Wapiti Academy and Sexsmith Secondary School in the Peace Wapiti School Division, and St. Joseph Catholic High School in Grande Prairie and District Catholic Schools – will share a nursing position starting later this month.
The pilot project is expanding following the success at Grande Prairie Composite. Bowes has handled more than 1,000 appointments with students since the School Nurse Integration Project started a year ago. She has also conducted 74 classroom presentations on health-related topics.
The nurses provide students with on-site immunization; general medical support; and education on a variety of health-related topics, including sexual health, tobacco cessation, nutrition and mental wellness. They also provide career information to students like Hannah who are interested in health care-related fields.
“We’re really pleased to be able to bring a nurse to three additional schools,” says Donna Koch, Executive Director of Public Health for AHS’s North Zone.
“Student populations are important groups to reach out to, in terms of providing health support and counselling, and placing a nurse within a school environment puts us right in the front lines.
It’s also an excellent opportunity for us to be able to talk to students about future careers in health care, while they’re still in school. It helps us find and ‘grow our own’ employees for the future.”
Bowes, with assistance from teacher Jay Smith, arranged job-shadowing opportunities for more than 100 students at the QEII Hospital and at local dental, optometry and veterinary clinics.
Bowes and Smith arranged for Hannah to job-shadow for a day at the Grande Prairie Public Health Centre and learn more about a career in public health, and later for six weeks at the Grande Prairie Cancer Clinic, located at the QEII Hospital.
“Both job-shadow placements made me even more interested in pursuing a career in health care,” Hannah says.
The School Nurse Integration Project was developed following discussions between Koch and the Grande Prairie Public School District, which wanted to increase access to health services for students. This is a tangible example of how local leadership and zone-based decision-making helps AHS develop programs and deliver services that address the specific needs of communities throughout the province.
About 3,300 students attend the four schools.
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