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August 24, 2024

New School-Based Health Clinic Provides Easy Access to Students

Mission Neighborhood Health Center (MNHC) is committed to keeping San Francisco happy and healthy by offering a variety of healthcare services to people of all ages. Part of this commitment involves MNHC recognizing needs within the community and developing solutions to fill these gaps. With this in mind, MNHC partnered with John O’Connell High School to open a school-based health clinic on August 24, significantly expanding healthcare access to approximately 500 students.

This new clinic compliments the school’s existing Wellness Center and aims to be a convenient “one-stop shop” primary care point that helps students keep their healthcare on track. The services offered by MNHC include sports and general physicals, vision and hearing screenings, testing for TB, HIV, and STIs, and care for burns, lacerations, sprains, and more. Additionally, students can access family planning and confidential services like pregnancy testing, contraceptive counseling, and treatment. The clinic can even help students and their family members connect to outside services.

“The proximity of John O’Connell High School to MNHC’s main Shotwell Street clinic has resulted in a strong relationship over time, with the school often referring students for confidential services. Unfortunately, the school did not have a nurse on staff during the last school year, as the district is experiencing difficulty finding and placing nurses at schools. These factors helped spur the creation of the new school-based clinic,” says Jose Lopez, Director of Programs and HIV Services at MNHC.

MNHC will also be promoting a couple of its unique programs as a complement to the healthcare services offered at John O’Connell. These programs include peer health outreach worker training, which consists of a paid stipend for high school students to receive training about public health and introduce them to mental health careers, and “Roadmap to Peace,” a youth violence prevention program.

The clinic is available to all John O’Connell students. Confidential services are free, while other healthcare services are either free of charge or require a nominal fee.

For location, hours and services, read more: John O’Connell School-Based Teen Clinic

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