Effective School Health Service: A Response to Adolescent Health Needs in Europe

The use of youth healthcare services and its association with health-related quality of life, physical and mental health and over-the-counter analgesics use in 13-19-year-old adolescents: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Youth healthcare services in Norway include a public health nurse (PHN) at school and local youth health centres (YHCs). They provide health services for all adolescents free of charge, focusing on health promotion and disease prevention. The present study aimed to assess possible associations between health-related quality of life (HRQoL), physical and mental health, over-the-counter analgesics (OTCA) use and use of youth healthcare services among 13-19-year-old adolescents.

METHODS

This study was based on national, cross-sectional data from the Ungdata Survey conducted in 2022. The sample was comprised of 16 482 adolescents. Multiple logistic regression was used to analyse the associations between HRQoL, headaches, selected physical symptoms, psychological distress, use of OTCA, PHN availability, sociodemographic variables, and use of the PHN at school or at a YHC. The KIDSCREEN-10 was used to measure HRQoL, and the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist 10 was used to measure symptoms of psychological distress.

RESULTS

Girls used the youth healthcare services more frequently than boys. Better HRQoL was significantly associated with fewer visits to the PHN at school. Girls reported lower HRQoL and mental health, and more pain and frequent OTCA use than boys. When having symptoms of psychological distress, boys had greater odds of visiting the PHN at school than girls. For girls in senior high school, headaches and OTCA use were strongly associated with visiting the PHN at school and the YHC. In senior high school, boys with an immigration background had greater odds of visiting the YHC than native Norwegian boys, while girls with an immigration background were less likely to visit the YHC than native Norwegian girls.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results show that more girls than boys use youth healthcare services. When adolescents experience pain, have mental problems, use OTCA, or report low levels of HRQoL, they have greater odds of using youth healthcare services. Youth healthcare services offer excellent opportunities to support and follow up with adolescents. The findings provide important insights into youth healthcare services used by adolescents for various stakeholders, including PHNs and policy makers, with potential implications for future public health efforts.

Associations between study questionnaire-assessed need and school doctor-evaluated benefit of routine health checks: an observational study

BACKGROUND

In Finland, school doctors examine all children at predetermined ages in addition to annual health checks by school nurses. This study explored the association of study questionnaire-assessed need for and school doctor-evaluated benefit of routine health checks conducted by doctors.

METHODS

Between August 2017 and August 2018, we recruited a random sample of 1341 children in grades 1 and 5 (aged seven and eleven years, respectively) from 21 elementary schools in four Finnish municipalities. Children mainly studying in special education groups or whose parents needed an interpreter were excluded. School nurses performed their health check as usual. Parents, nurses, and teachers then completed study questionnaires that assessed the concerns of parents, school nurses, and teachers regarding each child's physical, mental and social health. Doctors, blinded to the responses, routinely examined all the children. The primary outcome measures were (1) the need for a health check based on the study questionnaires and (2) the benefit/harm of the appointment as estimated by the doctors according to predetermined criteria, and (3) the patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) of benefit/harm of the appointment as estimated by the parents and children. We compared the need for a health check with the doctor-evaluated benefit using multilevel logistic regression.

RESULTS

The participation rate was 75.5 %. According to all questionnaires, 20-25 % of the 1013 children had no need for a health check. The doctors regarded 410 (40.6 %) and the parents 812 (83.4 %) of the appointments as being beneficial. Respondents rarely reported harm. The children who were classified as needing a health check more often benefitted from the health check (assessed by the doctor) than children with no need for one (OR 3.53; 95 % CI 2.41-5.17).

CONCLUSIONS

The need for a health check is an important predictor of school-doctor evaluated benefit of the health check. This approach could allow school doctors to allocate time for the children who need them most.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov, Identifier NCT03178331, registration June 6th 2017.

Organization and activities of school health services among EU countries

BACKGROUND

School health services (SHS) can be defined as health services provided to enrol pupils by health professionals and/or allied professions. The aim of this study was to explore the current state of the governance, organization and workforce of SHS and their provision of preventive activities in European countries.

METHODS

Observational study. Data were collected as part of the Horizon 2020-funded project 'Models of Child Health Appraised'. Only 1 expert from each of the 30 included European countries answered a closed-items questionnaire during the years 2017 and 2018.

RESULTS

All countries (except Spain and the Czech Republic, which do not have formal SHS) provided school-based individual screening and health-enhancing measures. The majority performed height, weight, vision and hearing checks; some integrated other assessments of limited evidence-based effectiveness. Most countries also delivered health education and promotion activities in areas, such as sexual health, substance use and healthy nutrition. Almost all countries seemed to suffer from a shortage of school health professionals; moreover, many of these professionals had no specific training in the area of school health and prevention.

CONCLUSIONS

Many EU countries need better administrative and legal support. They should promote evidence-based screening procedures and should hire and train more school health professionals. Overall, they need to adapt to the evolving health priorities of pupils, adopt a more holistic paradigm and extend their activities beyond traditional screening or vaccination procedures.