The St. Louis Children’s Hospital Injury Prevention Program is a successful safety education initiative that has been helping underserved children and their families avoid preventable injuries for more than 10 years. The program has built new playgrounds in several distressed neighborhoods where previously there had been no safe places to play. St. Louis Children’s Hospital also operates two “Healthy Kids Express” mobile health vehicles that offer free medical screenings, vaccinations and referrals for children throughout the region who may not be receiving regular health care. BJC’s School Outreach and Youth Development program provides services to public, private and parochial school districts in Missouri and Illinois. Services range from one-time speaking opportunities, health fairs and job shadowing to longer-term health education classes on topics such as preventing drug, alcohol and tobacco use; nutrition and fitness; safety; stress management and violence prevention.
In addition to meeting preventive and acute health-care needs, BJC partners with OASIS, a free membership program for older adults, which offers educational and volunteer opportunities, as well as assistance with insurance issues and financial planning. One of the most important programs offered by OASIS is HealthStages, which helps older adults identify health risks, develop action plans and make healthy changes in their lifestyle to sustain their ability to care for themselves and remain independent.
