East York school home to pediatric health clinic.
Nurse practitioner Susanna Fung, shows principal Nancy Steinhauer around the new Paul D. Steinhauer clinic inside George Webster Elementary school Thursday. (March 31, 2011)
Staff photo/DAN PEARCE
The place parents feel comfortable sending their children to learn is now also the place they can feel comfortable taking them when they are sick.The Toronto District School Board's second pediatric clinic opened March 31 at George Webster Elementary School. The Paul D. Steinhauer Clinic will provide primary health care to about 800 children."We know there's a need for increased access to health care for children in our community," said school principal Nancy Steinhauer, who initiated planning on the clinic about a year ago.It was named in honour of her father, a child psychiatrist and passionate child care advocate who died in May 2000. He spent his career working to break down barriers and promote mental and physical health for children."I think my father would have been very proud of what we have accomplished," Steinhauer said. The clinic will be run by a co-ordinator who is an international medical graduate getting Canadian experience through the clinic, while professional services will be offered by a nurse practitioner and physician from Access Alliance Multicultural Health and Community Services, a partner in the clinic.Cliff Ledwos, the agency's director of primary health care, was on hand for the launch of the clinic. The agency's philosophy is health with dignity and being involved with partnerships such as this help it achieve that goal, he said. "Being able to be out in the community and put primary care services out in the community accessible to people who need them when they need them," Ledwos said.The clinic will be open Tuesday mornings and Wednesday afternoons to provide services to students of George Webster, as well as their siblings, children registered in the school's Parenting and Family Literacy Centre and, on a referral basis, students of nearby schools.Gayathri Baranage is a parent in the community, which is located near Dawes Road and Victoria Park Avenue. She welcomed the opening of the clinic because as a newcomer to the area, she doesn't have a family doctor for her children and she knows many of her neighbours are in the same situation. "We are delighted to see the opening of the clinic at George Webster because it will be easily accessible for us and it will keep good health records for our children," said Baranage, who immigrated to Canada six months ago.The community stepped up to support the project as $50,000 needed to be raised to cover the first two years of operating costs. The students raised $1,000 through bake sales, a danceathon and penny drives.Aim Mujib, school council co-chair, was supportive of the project."George Webster has been working really hard to be the heart in this community," he said. "The clinic will make parents feel that the school is always there for them."George Webster is one of the schools in the TDSB Model Schools for Inner Cities Program, which aims to make the school the heart of the community and provide children with the resources they need to succeed. It is a partner in the clinic, as is the Toronto Foundation for Student Success. Studies show school-based health clinics not only improve children's health, but also increase mental health care for children, keep children in school and ready to learn, and save $2 in social costs in the future for each $1 spent in operating costs."It makes it so much more accessible to them," Ledwos said. "It means there are a lot of services in one location that they can tap into at one time."