School’s Free Clinic Gets Kaiser Grant

Columbus Middle School’s free clinic that serves students without medical insurance has received a $25,000 “Good Neighbor” grant from Kaiser Permanente Medical Center of Woodland Hills.

“We determined this was a good place to put our money,” Kaiser representative Lisa Kort said. “In the West Valley, there are pockets that really need these services.”

The grant will be used to expand treatment, purchase equipment and help staff the clinic, which serves about 9,500 students on 10 area campuses.

The clinic--which until recently could only assist low-income families to a limited extent--can now treat complaints such as head lice, rashes and strep throat that keep students out of school, clinic director and nurse Janis Lake said.

Often, she said, children’s illnesses are neglected for lack of affordable health services.

“Our overall goal is to improve student achievement and to help accommodate working parents,” she said.

Students’ families and the general community can also take advantage of the clinic for tuberculosis testing and some immunizations.

Counseling services will begin in March, Lake said. All services are free.

The clinic, which Lake called a “dream come true” for uninsured area families, first opened in 1996, helping to fill the void created by the 1995 closure of the Canoga Park Los Angeles County free health clinic.

This is the second gift Kaiser has made to the clinic. Last fall, Kaiser donated materials and labor to build a restroom for the facility.

Kaiser Permanente established its annual Good Neighbor program to help areas in need of health care services.

The health care provider also awarded $5,000 recently to Canoga Park’s Hart Street Elementary School health clinic, which provides dental and vision care and physical examinations for low-income children.