Comprehensive school–health services in selected secondary schools in the North West province

Abstract

Adolescents who are subjected to adverse health risks which limit school attendance and academic performance, is a national as well as an international recognised problem considering healthy youth to be productive members of society. The South African Department of Health has introduced a re-engineering program for primary health care of which school-health is one of three main areas of the primary health care services focusing on, but not limited to immunization, teenage pregnancy, education about HIV/Aids, and screening for health problems such as poor eyesight and hearing impairment. During October 2012 the new school-health program was piloted in very poor schools in KwaZulu Natal, Gauteng and Limpopo and will over the next four years be implemented in poor Secondary Schools. The aim of this research was to explore and describe comprehensive school-health services in two selected secondary schools in the North West province in order to propose recommendations to enhance adolescents' quality of life. The researcher used an explorative, descriptive, holistic multiple case study to gather rich data from two separate institutions (secondary schools) to reach the following objectives: * To identify and describe the demographic profile from existing records/documents available at each selected secondary school. * To explore and describe how comprehensive school-health services are experienced by key stakeholders, in two selected secondary schools in the North West province. * To explore and describe the perceptions of key stakeholders on how comprehensive school-health services should be rendered in two selected secondary schools in the North West province to enhance the quality of life of the adolescent. A description of the demographic profile was possible by means of a demographic data sheet completed by the principal to understand the background of each school included in the research. Rich information of key stakeholders' experiences and views about comprehensive school-health services was gained by four focus group interviews. Results of the data analysis showed a lack of comprehensive school-health services to adolescents in two secondary schools. The findings included adolescents' health problems as well as physical and emotional challenges educators are not equipped for and/or have not sufficient time to manage. Conclusions made from the research findings, contributed to recommendations for the nursing practice, nursing education and nursing research to enhance the quality of life of adolescents through comprehensive school-health services in selected secondary schools in the North West province.