Hometown Health Improvement/Educational Cooperatives Partnership

ADH is redirecting its efforts to work with schools on a broader scale through Hometown Health Improvement. ADH is working to build community partnerships to better serve students statewide. The state’s tobacco settlement funds have been used to hire 17 BSN prepared Registered Nurses to become Community Health Nurse Specialists (CHNS). The State School Nurse Consultant (SSNC) is employed by ADH and housed by the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE). The SSNC is working with school nurses, school administrators, and CHNS to improve the health of school children in Arkansas by providing professional leadership for all Arkansas school nurses and acting as a liaison for school nurses with state agencies. Fifteen CHNS are housed at the 15 Educational Cooperatives around the state that serve as resources to all school districts, school nurses, and teachers. The remaining CHNS is housed with the ADH Central Region since there is no Educational Cooperative for central Arkansas counties.

CHNS work with each Educational Cooperative and corresponding school districts on health issues. Additional training for all these nurses is being provided through the Arkansas’ UAMS College of Public Health, also funded by the state’s tobacco settlement. Their other duties include (1) identifying and evaluating training needs of school nurses and targeted communities with respect to tobacco prevention and cessation and other related public health issues, (2) participating in policy development and school-based enforcement of tobacco related policies, (3) linking school-based tobacco prevention efforts with local community coalitions, and (4) acting as liaison between schools, community coalitions, Hometown Health Improvement, and health care providers.