Our school district consists of students from diverse communities. We looked at Peoria county in Illinois, with an average population of 107 321. Trends indicate that it is currently declining in people with an average rate of -9.5% annually. The town’s annual household income stands at $74, 900 with a poverty rate of nearly 20%. The median rental cost for most households in the county is estimated to be $817 per month, with a household value of $127 900 (Chicago IL Demographics, 2022). This county has an average age of 35.2 years, with males living up to 33.6 years and 36.7 years for females.
The Peoria unified school district is situated in Glendale, Peoria, and has the leading schools in Arizona. Hanna city is a town found in Peoria county with two public schools that serve a population of about 1300 people. It means a public school per 600 people and one per square mile (Peoria Population, 2022). The following statistics represent demographics for Hanna city, located within Peoria county:
- Population – 1347
- Poverty rate – 7.1%
- Median household income – $54, 138
- Racial diversity, white – 94%, Hispanic – 5%, other races – 1%
- Political leaning is conservative
It is difficult to access affordable dental services in Hanna City, Illinois, since most facilities are private-owned and run by dentists. However, residents still have alternatives because of the presence of non-profit and government programs that can cater to their dental needs. These programs offer caps, check-ups, cleanings, braces, and dentures (Illinois Free Dental Clinics). Several nursing and convalescent homes in Hanna city offer quality care to residents. However, many low-cost homes cater to the aged owing to the town’s demographics which tend towards retirees. The Hanna Health Centre offers various counselling services, including mental health, child, and community services. These services cater to children, youth, and adults with addiction problems and mental health needs. Residents are served by several clinical counsellors who are found in mental health facilities.
The following data was collected from the 2020 annual report card for the Peoria unified school district.
- Student per teacher ratio at high school is 16: 1
- The student-teacher ratio at elementary school is 17:1
- 93.1% of teachers are white, 1.2% blacks, and 1.2 % Hispanics
- The racial diversity of students – 93.7 are white, 2.2 % Hispanic, and 2% others.
- 38% of students are low-income, 13% have IEPs, and no data is available for English learners.
- The district has a 94.3% graduation rate (Farmington Central, 2022).
Resource Evaluation
The table below shows the community’s needs and the available resources.
Collaboration
There are gaps in the community’s needs, including healthcare, housing, and population. These needs are common to most small-town communities and require forming stakeholder partnerships. The community has an underdeveloped transportation system that requires a lot of resources. Apart from Citylink, different organizations also need to come up and invest in the transport sector to ease the cost of doing business.
The town does not have sufficient resources to enable smooth service operations. It has a poor transport infrastructure that does not support the free movement of people and goods. Other resources that are not sufficient in the town include after-hours healthcare facilities, fewer low-income houses, fewer hours and days of CVS operations, and limited number of clinical health counsellors, among others. There are several gaps in the resources available to the community. The community will need to improve hours of operations of its healthcare facilities to cater for the growing health needs of the population. There is also need to improve and expand means of transport and stop overreliance on bus transport by increasing and diversifying vehicles. Various stakeholders need to be involved in providing solutions, especially concerning matters concerning transport.
Access to vaccination services for individuals with Medicaid was also a big challenge to this community. Stakeholders should collaborate with the health department to explore alternatives to offering such benefits closer to the people to meet their needs. Another option would be the provision of mobile clinics, which can be used to bring vaccination services closer to the people.
The main health priorities for the community in this area include the upgrading of current health facilities, improvement of transport infrastructure, and making access to health facilities easier. The county is faced with various health problems including substance use, mental health, healthy living, and cancer. These are problems that need to be addressed by providing quality healthcare services that is affordable and easily accessible. These problems are due to high poverty rate and an aging population.
Conclusion
In short, school nurses need to do community assessments in their area of operation to identify their needs and come up with the resources to address them. Hanna city is a town in Peoria county in Illinois, facing several challenges due to limited resources. It has inadequate healthcare facilities, personnel, and poor infrastructure. These needs can be addressed by developing practical solutions to help the community improve its welfare.
References
“Chicago, Illinois Population 2022.” Chicago, Illinois Population 2022 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). Web.
“Illinois Free Dental Clinics.” MEDICENTER. Web.
“Farmington Central Junior School.” (2022). Illinois Report Card. Illinois Report Card.
“Peoria Population, Illinois.”(2022). World Population Review. Peoria, Illinois Population 2022 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs)