Jim and Juli Boeheim Foundation Supports At-Risk Students With $10,000 Grant to School-Based Mental Health Program Through Oswego Health

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                            Contact: Jamie Leszczynski
                                                                                                                                                (315) 349-5601
                                                                                                                                                jleszczynski@oswegohealth.org

Jim and Juli Boeheim Foundation Supports At-Risk Students
With $10,000 Grant to School-Based Mental Health Program Through Oswego Health

(Oswego, NY – October 5, 2021) The Jim and Juli Boeheim Foundation is enabling Oswego Health to positively impact children enrolled in local school-based therapy programs by providing a $10,000 grant to purchase therapeutic tools, laptops, and other program supplies to aid in one-on-one counseling sessions.

In addition to providing a wide range of outpatient services to children, including medication management and therapy through Child and Family Services located in Fulton, Oswego Health operates school-based therapy clinics in several area school districts, including Hannibal, Fulton, and Oswego, with plans to expand to other local schools. Approximately 250 local children are enrolled in the program.

Not only are there many residents who do not have access to affordable health care, but poverty and isolation are directly associated with many health problems. This is especially true with respect to behavioral wellness. Oswego Health has already established very successful school-based clinics throughout the county and in half of the schools in the city of Oswego. These clinics have been instrumental in helping students improve their lives inside and outside school. However, because of insufficient funding, school-based clinics have not yet been made available to all the students who need them.

“We can’t thank the Jim & Juli Boeheim Foundation enough for their continued support of our programs,” stated Executive Director of the Oswego Health Foundation, Margaret Barclay. “Our school-based therapy clinics positively impact children every year and with many of these children considered at-risk, these programs are a true lifeline for many local families.”

School-based mental health services are evolving as a strategy to address concerns by removing barriers to accessing mental health services and improving coordination of those services. School-based mental health services offer the potential for prevention efforts as well as intervention strategies.  Reports show that school-based mental health services are less expensive than private or community-based mental health services. Therefore, the cost of providing mental health services at school, versus traditional settings, should not be an inhibiting factor for health insurers (private or Medicaid) and managed care organizations that are already resolved to providing these services somewhere.

The Oswego Health school-based clinic programs provide mental health assessments and treatments to children in a school-based setting. Cultivating overall mental well-being from a young age encourages children to have an open dialogue regarding mental health in the future and allows them to develop the resilience and knowledge to handle the difficulties of adulthood.  Providing behavioral health care in a school setting leads to much earlier intervention and allows providers to build meaningful relationships with individuals, who typically require mental health support over the long term.

Photo caption: Danielle Laurin provides mental health services in Hannibal School District.

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About Oswego Health
The mission of Oswego Health is to provide accessible, quality care and improve the health of residents throughout Oswego County. As a nonprofit healthcare system that was established in 1881, Oswego Health is proud to continue to be one of Oswego County’s largest employers. More than 1,200 employees spread throughout its 17 locations, work for the Oswego Health system, which includes the 164-bed community Oswego Hospital, Oswego Hospital, a 28-bed psychiatric acute-care facility with multiple outpatient behavioral health service locations, The Manor at Seneca Hill, a 120-bed skilled nursing facility, and Springside at Seneca Hill, an independent retirement community.  The health system also operates Oswego Health Home Care, the only hospital-based certified home healthcare agency in the County as well as two outpatient centers, including the Fulton Medical Center, offering urgent care, lab, medical imaging, physical therapy, and occupational health services; and the Central Square Medical Center, offering urgent care, lab, medical imaging, and physical therapy services. In addition, Oswego Health includes the Oswego Health captive professional corporation, Physician Care P.C., providing physician services in orthopedics, cardiology, ENT, urology, gastroenterology, breast care, audiology, general surgery, bariatrics, and primary care. For more information about Oswego Health, please visit our website  www.oswegohealth.org.