Services include nurses, telehealth and athletic trainers
ROME, Ga., July 10, 2024 – Healthy and happy students are better learners. Healthy and happy families are better supporters, and healthy and happy educators are better teachers.
As students in northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama get ready to return to school, Atrium Health Floyd is ready to support students and their families on campus, on the sidelines and after school.
As the official health care provider for Floyd County Schools, Rome City Schools, Darlington Schools and the Polk School District, Atrium Health Floyd offers either in-person or telehealth care for students and teachers on every campus.
Atrium Health Floyd manages the school nurse programs for Floyd County and Rome City Schools as well as the Polk School District. In addition, Atrium Health Floyd provides a certified athletic trainer to each of the high schools in Floyd County Schools, Polk County Schools, Rome City Schools, Unity Christian School, Trion City Schools, Chattooga County Schools as well as Darlington School, Cass High School, Adairsville High School and Woodland High School.
Atrium Health Floyd also operates a full-service, primary care clinic at the College and Career Academy on the Rome High School campus.
“Establishing early access to health care services is critical to student success and a healthy community," said Chris Butler, director of Corporate Health at Atrium Health Floyd. “Students learn best when they are well. They are more likely to choose to live in our communities and become leaders here when they have a solid educational base."
Providing these services on campus benefits students, teachers and parents. Approximately half of the students who received a telehealth visit while at school were able to return to the classroom, Butler said. This eliminated a parent having to miss work, a student missing important instruction and an interruption for teachers.
School clinics also can help parents get their students ready for the new school year by providing hearing and vision tests, immunizations and other preventive health services.
They also provide peace of mind for parents of children who have medical conditions that may require monitoring or intervention, Butler said.
“Our school nurses are well prepared to provide the care students need, connect students and parents to health care providers when further care is needed and to support teachers and administrators in minimizing health-related disruptions and optimizing student learning," Butler said.
About Atrium Health Floyd
The Atrium Health Floyd family of health care services is a leading medical provider and economic force in northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama. Atrium Health Floyd is part of Charlotte, North Carolina-based Advocate Health, the third-largest nonprofit health system in the United States, created from the combination of Atrium Health and Advocate Aurora Health. Atrium Health Floyd employs more than 3,500 teammates who provide care in over 40 medical specialties at three hospitals: Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center – a 304-bed full-service, acute care hospital and regional referral center in Rome, Georgia; Atrium Health Floyd Polk Medical Center in Cedartown, Georgia; and Atrium Health Floyd Cherokee Medical Center in Centre, Alabama; as well as Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center Behavioral Health – a freestanding 53-bed behavioral health facility in Rome – and also primary care and urgent care network locations throughout northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama. Atrium Health Floyd also operates a stand-alone emergency department in Chattooga County, the first such facility to be built from the ground-up in Georgia.
About Atrium Health
Atrium Health is a nationally recognized leader in shaping health outcomes through innovative research, education and compassionate patient care. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Atrium Health is part of Advocate Health, the third-largest nonprofit health system in the United States, which was created from the combination with Advocate Aurora Health. A recognized leader in experiential medical education and groundbreaking research, Wake Forest University School of Medicine is its academic core. Atrium Health is renowned for its top-ranked pediatric, cancer and heart care, as well as organ transplants, burn treatments and specialized musculoskeletal programs. Atrium Health is also a leading-edge innovator in virtual care and mobile medicine, providing care close to home and in the home. Ranked nationally among U.S. News & World Report's Best Hospitals in eight pediatric specialties and for rehabilitation, Atrium Health has also received the American Hospital Association's Quest for Quality Prize and its 2021 Carolyn Boone Lewis Equity of Care Award, as well as the 2020 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Health Equity Award for its efforts to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in care. With a commitment to every community it serves, Atrium Health seeks to improve health, elevate hope and advance healing – for all, providing $2.8 billion last year in free and uncompensated care and other community benefits.
About Advocate Health
Advocate Health is the third-largest nonprofit integrated health system in the United States – created from the combination of Advocate Aurora Health and Atrium Health. Providing care under the names Advocate Health Care in Illinois, Atrium Health in the Carolinas, Georgia and Alabama, and Aurora Health Care in Wisconsin, Advocate Health is a national leader in clinical innovation, health outcomes, consumer experience and value-based care. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Advocate Health services nearly 6 million patients and is engaged in hundreds of clinical trials and research studies, with Wake Forest University School of Medicine serving as the academic core of the enterprise. It is nationally recognized for its expertise in cardiology, neurosciences, oncology, pediatrics and rehabilitation, as well as organ transplants, burn treatments and specialized musculoskeletal programs. Advocate Health employs 155,000 teammates across 69 hospitals and over 1,000 care locations, and offers one of the nation's largest graduate medical education programs with over 2,000 residents and fellows across more than 200 programs. Committed to providing equitable care for all, Advocate Health provides nearly $6 billion in annual community benefits.