Who can initiate and manage a coordinated approach to health?
Coordinated school health can be managed by different staff. In some areas a school health coordinator from either the health department or department of education (or sometimes one from each) would initiate and develop the approach with guidance from a community board. The key to a successful approach is to have someone who brings together all of the many people in charge so that the overall effort is coordinated. The school nurse, often with help from the public health department, often coordinates and provides health services along with other professionals, such as social workers, speech pathologists, and dentists providing specific services. There is no one model. The organization and maintenance of a coordinated approach depends to a large extent on the staff at each school, the families, and the community partners who are available to help.
