A Winston-Salem school has transformed a once-empty portable building into a health clinic.
The project at Old Town Elementary has been in the works for over two years and was a community effort. Local churches, organizations and the School Health Alliance for Forsyth County came together to fund, build and staff the clinic.
At the unveiling Friday morning, School Social Worker Sam Zivin said he pitched the idea after seeing a need.
“We had a number of our kids here at Old Town who were sick and who were staying out of school for a significant amount of time, not necessarily because they wanted to, but because for whatever reason they didn't have access to the medical care they needed," Zivin said.
Now, students from all over the district can make appointments at this clinic — regardless of their ability to pay. There’s a full-time family nurse practitioner, a medical assistant, and a mental health provider who will be there a few days a week.
Executive Director of the School Health Alliance for Forsyth County, Stephanie Daniel, says this is more than a clinic. She calls it a "beacon of goodness" in the community.
"We know that kids who are healthy physically, nutritionally and emotionally and behaviorally are better able to succeed in the classroom. And that's really what it's all about," she said. "We want kids, all kids, to have equal opportunity to quality health care, and in turn, quality educational opportunities, so that they can be successful."
This is the seventh brick-and-mortar clinic in the district.