AN OVERVIEW OF THE NATIONAL SCHOOL HEALTH PROGRAM POLICY



The WHO’s Expert Committee on Comprehensive School Health Education Program in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Ministry of Education after conducting a Rapid Assessment on School Health system in Nigeria to ascertain the status of school health, discovered several health problems among learners as due to lack of health and sanitation facilities in our schools.


Despite, long years of Health Education taught m our various schools as a curricular subject had little or no effect in influencing on the knowledge, attitude and behavior on health of the learners and has remained a source of concern that needed urgent actions. Based on these findings the committee came up with the following policies on school Health Programme:-

(1) The School Health Programme:
The main goal of this programme is to improve the health of learners and staff as responsible and productive citizens with the following objectives -
a) Promoting growth and development of every child ‘by taking into consideration of his/her health need
b) Creating awareness on the collaborative efforts of the school, home and community in health promotions.
c) Developing health consciousness among leathers.
d) Creating awareness on the already existing health programme and making use of the various health related resources in the community.
e) Promoting the collaboration in a world of interdependence social interaction and technological exposure’ in addressing emergent health issues.
f) Building the skills of learners and staff for health promotion in the school community.

2) Healthful School Environment:
To consciously organize, plan and execute all effort ensuring the safety and healthy living conditions for all the members of the school community. Creating a healthy and safe learning environment in the school, providing adequate safe water supply and sanitation facilities for use in schools.

(3) School Feedin2 services:
School feeding services are aimed at providing an adequate meal a day to all children enrolled in school nationwide with its objective of:
1. Reducing hunger among school children.
2. Increasing school enrollment, attendance, retention and completion rates particularly among children in poor rural communities and urban neighbourhood.
3. Improving the nutritional status of the schools children and
4. To enhance the comprehension and learning abilities of pupils and students.

4) Skilled Based Health Education
This is promoting the development of sound health knowledge, attitudes, skills practices among the learners. Subject aimed at meeting the growth and developmental needs and interest of learners with its objects as:
1. Providing adequate information on key health issues affecting the school community.
2. Development skill-based health education curricular
3. Providing participatory learning experiences for, the development of knowledge, attitudes, skills and desirable health habits iii relation to personal and community health
4. Evaluating learners progress towards healthy development.
5. School Health Services:
Preventive and curative services provided for the promotion of the health status of learners
The purpose of this school health service is for the teachers to help children at school in achieving the maximum health possible for them to obtain full benefit from their education by:-
• Providing basic services for disease prevention and management of injuries in the school
• Building the capacity of the school community in identifying, treating and managing simple illness, injuries, infection and infestations, through the pre-medical screening, routine health screening/examination, school health records, First Aid and referral services and also providing advisory and counseling for the school community and parents.

(6) Schools home and community relationship
Parents are the first Health Educators who shape the child’s habits right for infancy before the child is ready for school. They should secure needed immunization and medical care and inculcate good and sound habits into the child.
The success of every School Health Programme entirely depends on the extent to which community members are award of and willing to Support health promotion efforts. Parents and c unity members should be encouraged by the school to make inputs regarding the design, delivery, content and assessment of the programme, so as to respond to their concerns and obtain their commitment at same time play an important role in improving health and development of the community through:
*          Building and strengthening: the capacities for an effective community involvement and participation in school management and lastly
*          Improve advocacy and community mobilization to bring about necessary support from stakeholders.
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