FORT SMITH, Ark. — Mercy Fort Smith and the Western Arkansas Guidance and Counseling Center have partnered up to open a new school-based health center in Fort Smith.
The health center is called Mercy Clinic Family Medicine and is located on North H St. between Darby Jr. High and Tilles Elementary School.
Mercy Clinic Family Medicine was opened to address the physical and mental health needs of local students and their families. It will be serving the students in the Fort Smith Public School District, their families as well as district staff members.
The health center will be providing physical health services as well as prevention and wellness education through Mercy Clinic and emotional and mental health services will be provided by the Western Arkansas Counseling and Guidance Center.
Care at the health center will be provided by advanced practice nurse Heather Erwin with Mercy Clinic, and physician collaborator Dr. Kendall Wagner. The first patient was seen on August 4.
Fort Smith students can start utilizing the services after a parent or guardian completes and signs a registration form.
The plans for this health center were developed in 2020 and it’s supported by a grant from the Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary Education, school officials said.
“We are very excited about serving students, staff, and families,” said Kerri Tucker, school-based health center coordinator with Fort Smith Public Schools. “All three partners will be working together on a shared goal. We want a healthy school community so students are successful in the classroom and beyond.”
Mercy officials say this health center as an opportunity to provide easier access to health care to students and their families in the school district.
“This opportunity to serve the health needs of those who may be underserved is in line with Mercy’s mission,” said Kay McCarley, director of operations at Mercy Clinic Fort Smith. “The joint effort between Mercy, The Guidance Center, and Fort Smith Public Schools presented a unique opportunity to reach local students and families and help provide the care they needed. We are pleased to be a part of this collaboration and look forward to serving the needs of the school district for years to come.”
The Western Arkansas Counseling and Guidance Center will provide services such as mental health awareness, outreach including suicide prevention, screening for depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and other mental health conditions and behavioral health care. These services will include assessment, treatment, referral, and crisis intervention, individual, group and family therapy, qualified behavioral health provider services, and social service assessment, referral, and follow-up as needed.
"We are excited about this collaboration with Fort Smith Public Schools’ new health center,” said Marla Kendrick, chief operations officer with The Guidance Center. “Having students and staff able to receive the mental health care they need on campus reduces so many barriers. Allowing students to learn with unnecessary interruptions in their classroom time is so important. This also allows for students to receive services in a safe, convenient, and accessible way."
Kendrick says The Guidance Center is partnered with six other school based wellness centers for behavioral health services in the area.
Below is a list provided by Mercy of the services that will be provided at the new health center.
Services may include but are not limited to:
• Routine physical exams, including sports physicals.
• Diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic illness.
• Treatment of minor injuries.
• Vision, hearing and medical screening.
• Age-appropriate reproductive health services with parent approval (abstinence counseling, education, exams and referrals).
• Limited immunizations.
• Laboratory testing.
• Health education, counseling and wellness promotion.
• Nutrition education and weight management.
• Telemedicine.
• Prescription medications.
• Classroom presentations.
• Referrals for services not provided at the School-Based Health Center.
Those who are eligible to use the health center can be treated for other illnesses, such as flu or strep throat and chronic conditions, including asthma and diabetes.
The health center hours will be Monday through Thursday 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and Friday 7: 30 a.m. to 11 a.m. For students who get sick while at school, access to the center will be through the school nurse. To schedule an appointment, you can call 479-784-8131.
