Analysis Finds SBHC Utilization Associated with Improved School Attendance
It’s long been thought that School-Based Health Centers can create better access to care for students and yield improved academic performance. An Analysis Published in December 2023 in The Journal of Adolescent Health sought to prove this by analyzing data from 17 different SBHCs across a single urban area, looking specifically at changes in attendance post SBHC visit.
The authors found that students who received care from a SBHC had a more marked increase in attendance trajectories post-visit than those who had not sought care at a SBHC.
Change in Attendance Following the First SBHC Visit or Proxy Date for SBHC Users and Non-Users.
This trend was even more apparent in those who received a mental health visit. Before their SBHC mental health visit, students displayed a marked decline in monthly attendance (preslope -1.02%). Post mental health visit, attendance increased (postslope 1.44%), with difference-in-difference of 2.33.
Change in Attendance Following the First SBHC Mental Health Visit or Proxy Date for SBHC Users and NonUsers.
