Core Health Partners and Grace Place Center for Children and Families have partnered to provide greater access to preventive healthcare screenings, diabetes and nutritional education, as well as medical interventions through speech, physical and occupational therapy.

Recognizing that as much as 90% of what impacts an individual’s health takes place outside clinical walls, Core Health Partners began developing community-centered partnerships with a goal to give every child and family early access to clinical preventive services.

“We are breaking the traditional model of healthcare and bridging the gap between the doctor’s office and community agencies. Through collaborations like this, we can improve the overall health of the community by reaching more children and families,” said Paul Thein, vice president of Core Health Partners.

Families were invited to attend an orientation meeting at Grace Place between September 15 and 29 to learn more about the services to be provided. According to Mr. Thein, the events were very successful with a diverse group of families who asked engaging questions.

In this partnership, Grace Place for Children and Families will provide a HIPPA compliant space for clinicians to work directly with the children enrolled in the school’s early education and after school programs. With parental consent, Core Health Partners’ licensed pediatric clinical staff will provide developmental screenings to ensure children are meeting key physical and social-emotional milestones.

Additionally, registered dieticians and nutritionists provide education and diabetes screenings to engage children in making healthier choices. Beyond the screenings, medical professionals will be on site to provide follow up treatment for children that need medical interventions such as diabetes education, behavioral therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech therapy. Treatments will be provided at the Grace Place campus, to ease the challenges of transportation and work commitments.

“Many of our families are reluctant to seek healthcare services because they don’t speak the language, which makes it harder to trust and understand medical needs,” said Lära Fisher, CEO of Grace Place for Children and Families.

“By partnering with Core Health, we are excited to extend wrap-around services for our families in a safe and trusted way,”

In addition to this location, Core Health Partners provides comprehensive pediatric outreach services through a collaborative network in Immokalee, the Marco YMCA, the Greater Naples YMCA, the Bloom Day School, and the Academia of Sanchez Casal. Registered dieticians and clinicians are also available to serve the diabetic children and adults through the Healthcare Network of Southwest Florida. Core Health Partners diabetes education program is recognized by the American Diabetes Association as meeting the ADA’s National Standards for diabetes education.