Choptank Community Health System is celebrating 25 years of providing school-based health services to Mid-Shore students. The milestone is being recognized in February as part of the National School-Based Health Care Awareness Month. Choptank Health is celebrating its successes and raising awareness about how school-based health centers improve access to healthcare services for children and adolescents and how they make a difference in their lives today and in the future.

Rooted in Caroline County: A Legacy of Care

Choptank Health’s school-based care journey began in 1999 with the opening of four School-Based Health Centers in Caroline County Public Schools, igniting a legacy of healthcare excellence and helping to enhance students’ well-being during the academic year.

Choptank Health was awarded a Project Healthy Schools’ Healthy Communities Grant to establish school-based primary care services in Caroline County. A partnership with Caroline County Public Schools, the Caroline County Health Department, and the University of Maryland School of Nursing helped establish the School-Based Health Center sites at Greensboro Elementary and Federalsburg Elementary Schools, and Colonel Richardson Middle and Lockerman Middle Schools.

Over the years, Choptank Health’s commitment to the community has flourished, with School-Based Health Centers and programs now spanning Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s, and Talbot Counties. Eighteen school-based health centers and a mobile health unit reach more than 8,000 students each year, providing dental services in Dorchester County; medical, dental, dietetic, and behavioral health services in Caroline and Talbot Counties; and medical and dental services in Queen Anne’s and Kent Counties.

President and CEO Sara Rich reflects on the organization’s growth, stating, “We are incredibly proud of our Caroline County roots in school-based health. Our dedicated team, now extending beyond medical providers to include dental hygienists, therapists, and dietitians, continues to make a positive impact on the lives of Mid-Shore students.”

The school-based health centers provide in-person, virtual, curbside, well and urgent care during the school year and over the summer months, with student enrollment required. Services include diagnosis and treatment of illnesses, behavioral health services, dietitian services, and educational services.

Choptank Health’s School-Based dental programs include dental screenings and sealants, polishing/cleanings, oral health education, fluoride treatments, and dental emergency referrals.

“We are excited to celebrate 25 years of providing services in our school-based programs,” said Choptank Health Director of Community-Based Programs Chrissy Bartz. “I am proud of our team and the tremendous work being done in our schools.”

For more information, visit www.choptankhealth.org/schoolbased.

UM Shore Regional Health’s Laboratory at Roundtop, located at 6602 Church Hill Rd., Suite 450 in Chestertown, will reopen to patients on Monday, February 19 following a brief closure to focus on staffing and recruitment of additional phlebotomists and team members. The facility has also undergone several upgrades including new flooring and fresh paint since temporarily closing in November 2023.

“UM Shore Regional Health has been committed to reopening the laboratory by spring 2024 and has worked hard to ensure we were able to accomplish this well-ahead of our goal,” said Juliana Hospodor, Director, Laboratory Services, UM Shore Regional Health. “This is a promise of quality and consistency to our Kent County community.” UM Shore Regional Health is a member organization of the University of Maryland Medical System.

Laboratory services are available at the Roundtop location from 6 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Mondays and from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays.

Patients with CareFirst, CIGNA and Priority Partners as their health insurance must use a non-hospital laboratory to complete lab work.

To honor team members and departments who play a key role in helping the Primary Stroke Center at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton achieve the Get With The Guidelines annual awards, members of UM Shore Regional Health’s Senior Leadership team, as well as members of management, delivered the good news and ice cream to several departments, including the Intensive Care Unit (pictured), Telemetry and Emergency Departments.

UM Shore Regional Health recently was notified that UM Shore Medical Center at Easton’s Primary Stroke Center received the 2023 Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Gold Plus quality achievement award from the American Heart Association (AHA)/American Stroke Association (ASA) and is included in ASA’s Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll. This is the eighth consecutive year that UM SRH’s Primary Stroke Center has received the Stroke Gold Plus award.

UM Shore Medical Center at Easton is a University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH) facility; UM SRH is a member organization of the University of Maryland Medical System. These achievements highlight UM SRH’s commitment to providing the most effective stroke treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence and its dedication to prioritizing quality care for stroke patients.

“This is a significant achievement for any medical institution and shows that UM Shore Regional Health provides state-of-the-art, patient-centered stroke care for our communities,” said Rena Sukhdeo Singh, MD, Medical Director of the Primary Stroke Center. “We are honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association for our dedication to helping patients have the best possible chance of survival and recovery following a stroke. Our exceptional team members and members of our emergency response teams throughout the region deserve recognition for these awards, including our Emergency Medical Service providers, our Emergency Department teams, our Stroke Coordinator Nicole Leonard, our entire Brain Attack Team, and the nurses on our neurology/telemetry unit.”

To honor team members and departments who play a key role in working with the Primary Stroke Center, members of the senior leadership team and other management delivered the good news and ice cream to several departments, including the Intensive Care Unit, and the Telemetry and Emergency Departments.

Stroke is among the top five causes of death and the leading cause of adult disability in the U.S. Each year, strokes take the lives of more than 130,000 Americans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. UM Shore Regional Health provides stroke care to approximately 600 patients every year.

UM Shore Medical Center at Easton was designated as a Primary Stroke Center in 2007. A Primary Stroke Center designation is given by the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS) when standards are met to support better outcomes for stroke care. Certification standards include having a dedicated program staffed 24/7 by specially trained medical professionals who provide fast diagnostic services and optimal stroke care.

Additional information about the Primary Stroke Center at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton can be found at UMShoreRegional.org/stroke.