A recent study states that the medical needs of 6.2 million U.S. kids go unmet every year. Initiatives to address this problem need to target both coverage and access to health care, concludes the study originally published in Pediatrics.The Children’s Aid Society in New York has not only pioneered health care for children for over 150 years, but also has emphasized that the key to a child’s success is easy access to health care.

Charles Loring Brace, founder of  The Children’s Aid Society stated that “When medical care is convenient and accessible, more children live healthier lives.” This may be why, along with support from the New York Times, in1872, The Children’s Aid Society employed teams of nurses and physicians to visit sick children in tenements, establishing the model for Visiting Nurses Services.

• And why in, 1901, The Children’s Aid Society employed the first school nurse in any New York City school.

• And why in, 1906, the first free school dental clinic in the United States was established by The Children’s Aid Society in New York (and why, by 1913, there was a dental clinic in every one of its schools).

And it’s also why today every child who comes into one of The Children Aid Society’s school and community clinics receives comprehensive and coordinated examinations and treatment. The health and mental health services of New York’s Children’s Aid Society remains on the cutting edge of children’s services. Many of its successful program models are replicated across the nation; adapted by public schools throughout the U.S., and across the globe.

Tags: American Academy of Pediatrics, Charles Loring Brace, Children's Aid New York City, counseling, Health, Health Care, mental health services, New York Times, U.S. News and World Report