Health Center coming to Long Branch schools

By Patty Booth O’Neill
Long Branch — While not a unique idea, having a school install its own Health Center still seems like an incredible endeavor. But in Long Branch it’s a done deal, already passed by the Board of Education.
Mike Salvatore, superintendent of Long Branch Schools, is responsible for 950 employees and facing rising costs. With budget increases capped at 2 percent, salaries will go up $1 million a year and the average increase in health benefits will go up $1.4 million a year. With the cost of running a school system rising, Salvatore is facing a conundrum

To keep within their budget, Salvatore has to make a decision on what to cut because the amount of money the school system receives from the state falls short by $200,000.

“To keep within our budget I would have to cut services or jobs,” Salvatore said. “I don’t really want to do that, so I decided to look at the health system to save money.” He felt that there was a way to keep costs down and not put any additional financial burdens on taxpayers.

Long Branch Superintendent Michael Salvatore in one of the examination rooms that already exists in the school.

The workout room that is used by students during school hours will be used as a physical therapy workout area after and before school when students are not around. Connected to this area is a full sized weight room.

Salvatore decided to install a high end Partnership Health Center at the new high school that now houses the School Board Youth Services Suite. There will be a doctor on site 12 hours a day during the week and five hours on Saturday and Sunday, a pharmacy, physical therapy, a chiropractor and pain management, among other things. It will house a doctor’s office, two or three examinations rooms and an Xray room.

“The doctor can write a prescription and the patient can go right to the on-site pharmacy and have it filled,” Salvatore said.
The center will only be for school employees and their dependents, not students.
An employee can also have blood tests done at the center. “I’m supposed to have a blood test done and I’ve been putting it off for six weeks,” Salvatore said. Now all he or any employee will have to do is walk across campus. The blood tests will be picked up by LabCorp.
“The center will have its own entrance and be completely cut off from students,” Salvatore said.
That part of the school is already outfitted with examination rooms and offices so there will be a minimum cost to retrofit the center. Their next step is installing an X-ray machine.

The Center will be developed by  Integrity Health, an onsite healthcare management company. They said that it is automatically $2 million to start a program like this. “But when they came and saw how much we already have they said it would only be $180,000,” Salvatore said. “That’s a big drop.”

To make an appointment all one has to do is go online and see what times are available. A big part of the Health Center’s focus will be on physical therapy, pain management and preventative health care.

Physical therapy will take place in what is now the students’ weight room and workout area. The hours will be early before school or after school and will not interfere with student workout times.

The Health Center will be a totally free operation, with no co pay out of pocket, no insurance card.

“Right now our health care broker estimates our costs rising 18 percent a year, which is $1.4 million. With our own Health Center our cost is projected to increase by only 1 percent over 3 years.”

The school’s model is the Center that has been used by Toms River School system, which is very successful. Many businesses are also installing their own Health Centers to cut costs.

The Center is fully voluntary. If anyone wants to visit their own doctor they can. If they want to utilize the facility they can.
The Center will be opened by October 1, 2014.

“Our staff deserves this,” Salvatore said. “They work very hard here. And now I don’t have to cut staff or services by two million dollars.”