Health, Nutrition, Hygiene and Sanitation Promoting on School Feeding Programmes

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By Farah (SFP and Gardening Expert)

Overview

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Introduction Objectives of the School Health Programme in

relation to CFS Role of School Health in Education Factors affecting Learners’ Health School Health Policies Skills - based Health Education Creating a Health and Nutrition Promoting

School. Indications that Learners are Healthy Recap Conclusion

Introduction

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Good health and nutrition are indispensable for effective learning as learners can reap maximum benefits from the teaching and learning process if they are healthy. The school health program is an important component of the total school program and schools have a legal and moral responsibility to ensure learners have a safe sanitary and healthy environment.

“ Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease.” A school health program can be viewed as the school procedures that contribute to the maintenance and improvement of the health of learners and personnel. The school health program should be a shared responsibility involving the school, sponsors, parents and the community.

Objectives of the Sch- Health programme in Relation to CFS

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The overall objective of the school health program is to promote, maintain and contribute to the knowledge of learners and staff about healthy living. Specifically, the school health program seeks to: Impart knowledge, skills, practices and proper attitudes to learners in relation to health. Promote and maintain good health practices among the learners Monitor and appraise the health status of the learners through health screening and examinations. To provide first line emergency services to learners and teachers injured or taken ill. To collaborate with health agencies, parents and communities on issues relating to learners’ health. To counsel and give guidance to learners and parents on matters relating to health.

The Role of School Health in Education

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The role of Sch Health in education is justified on the following grounds:

Good health facilitates and enhances teaching and learning.

Health and nutrition education values eventually translate to the general populace hence a national health and nutrition culture.

Teachers are better placed to impart proper and accurate knowledge, attitudes and skills to learners on health matters than their peers or their parents.

Teachers are educated and adequately skilled to facilitate simple health interventions such as deworming and vitamin A supplementation.

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Learners tend to have a lot of faith in and hold in high esteem their teachers and will therefore readily internalize health education messages from teachers.

It is easier to sustain in adult life the knowledge, attitudes and skills learnt earlier in school as compared to obtaining the same later on from health practitioners.

Schools provide grounds for more effective large scale desermination of Health and Nutrition messages as such messages tend to reach more recipients with minimal resources.

Implementing School Health and Nutrition Programmes strengthens the capacity of the MOE and relevant stakeholders in providing quality education.

Factors Affecting Learners’ Health

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School , home and community based factors have implications on the health of learners. Such factors include:

The state and condition of physical infrastructure such as classrooms, dormitories, toilets, playgrounds; the care of floors, walls; the placement of furniture; use of toilets; the state of the playgrounds, corridors, driveways, and walkways have implications on the health of learners . For example, a dusty, unclean floor can result in respiratory problems for learners.

Lighting, ventilation and acoustics also affecting learners’ health. Poor lighting can, for example, lead to eye problems. Poorly ventilated rooms can also lead to the spread of respiratory diseases and communicable diseases. Poor acoustics not only lead to learning distractions but also to hearing problems

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Food safety. Food safety refers to access and consumption of wholesome food that promotes good health and optimal body functioning. Access and consumption of safe food by learners is important because safe and wholesome food promotes health and in turn, effective learning. Research has shown that learners who have access to wholesome (safe) food have more enjoyable and successful learning experiences. Learners eat food prepared by the school, brought by their parents or purchased from food vendors. The nutritional status, preparation of foodstuffs and the health of those preparing food have far-reaching implications on the health of learners.

The emotional health of the learners is equally affected by the length of the school day, school rules and regulations, and ways of handling learner behavior

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Water supply and disposal. In the school, waste materials may be

generated from the kitchen , classrooms, labs, construction sites or from daily compound cleaning. Each school should have rules for the management of its waste materials and should make provision for orderly segregation and destruction of wastes.

It is important for learners to have access to clean and safe drinking water and water for cleanliness as contaminated water can lead to a number of health problems, among them, typhoid, cholera and dysentery. In addition, poor disposal of liquid and solid waste can also result to health problems.

School Health Policies

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School health policies state what actions we will take to improve the overall health, hygiene and nutrition of the learners and especially those with diverse backgrounds and abilities. Ensuring that all learners are healthy and are able to learn is an essential part of a child – friendly school.

Involving many partners including teachers, learners, parents, community leaders and social service providers is the best way to develop school health policies.

Improving the health and nutrition of learners through school health and nutrition programmes is not new. Many schools have such programmes because they realize that children's ability to attain their full potential depends on good health and nutrition and a safe learning environment. Learners are also able to learn to their fullest when they feel the safest.

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It is therefore important for school administrators and stakeholders to supplement learners’ meals through various strategies as most parents hardly provide adequate and nutritious meals for their children. Such interventions would be in keeping with the government’s initiative of promoting Primary Health Care.

Teachers should be sensitive to the nutritional and health status of all learners in order to give appropriate advice to parents and guardians.

The process of formulating school health policies should involve the following: Assembling a School Health team by creating a

Community Health Advisory Committee. Building consensus Developing Sch Health Policies and advocacy messages. Communicating this to stakeholders with a view to building

the needed support.

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Developing relevant themes and slogans and operationalizing them such as by having:School health day (s)A school health clubSponsoring a street display in a busy area. Using Art classes to encourage learners to come up

with health promotion artwork to decorate the school or community centers with.

Promoting the need for Sch Health policies and programmes through public education techniques such as flyers, brochures, posters e.t.c

Examples of School Health Policies

Policy Issues Examples of School Policies

Sanitation and hygiene •Adequate and Separate latrines for male and female teachers as well as boys and girls.•Clean and safe water for drinking and general use.•Active commitment from the PTA/SMC/BOG in maintaining water and sanitation facilities

Delivery of Simple School Health and Nutrition Packages

•Training and use of teachers to deliver simple health and nutrition interventions in collaboration with relevant stakeholders and with the involvement of the local community.•Regulation of food vendors and the quality, hygiene and standards of the food provided.

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Cont…School Feeding and meals

•Provision of a hot meal to all learners per day with an effort to ensure that the dietary needs of learners with special needs are catered for.•All food handlers should have valid medical certificates and/ or trade licenses.•Provision of safe preparation and storage facilities for food.

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Skills – Based Health Education

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All learners and particularly those with diverse backgrounds and abilities, need skills to be able to use their health knowledge to practice healthy habits and avoid unhealthy ones. One way to impart these skills is through Skills – based health education .

Most schools teach some form of health Education. However skills – based health education focuses on changing specific health behaviours in terms of knowledge, skills and attitudes. These help the child to choose and practice (not simply learn about) healthy behaviours.

Skills – based health education programmes are planned around learners’ needs and rights and therefore, are relevant to the daily lives of young people.

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Five of the most important attitudes that need to be developed through skills – based education are: Self respect: I want to be clean, smart, fit and healthy Self esteem and self confidence: I know I can make a

difference to the health of my family even though I am still a child.

Respect for others: I need to listen to others, to respect them and their customs even when they are different or when I cannot agree with them.

Concern for others: I want to do my best to help others become healthier, particularly those who are disadvantaged.

Dealing with peer pressure is also central to effective Sch based health Education.

When learners adopt such skills they are likely to sustain a healthy lifestyle during schooling and in their future lives.

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Although health issues constitute part of the syllabi of various subjects the integrated teaching approach should be used to effectively aid learning about health.

In teaching health related issues, teachers should use learner centered methods that allow greater learner participation such as problem solving, demonstration, discussions, dramatization, excursions and field trips.

Health instruction should be enriched through use of up to date information and materials from relevant authorities such as MOPHS, NEMA and National Aids Council.

All teachers should be trained in first aid skills.

Group Activity

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What strategic intervetions are necessary in facilitating the following components of a Health and Nutrition Promoting School:

a) The School Feeding Programme e.g. strengthen the promotion of sanitation and hygiene in schools.

b) The Safe Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Programme e.g. put in place appropriate water treatment methods such as filtration, boiling and chlorination.

c) The Child Health and Nutrition Programmes e.g. ensuring that pupils are regularly dewormed.

d) Skills based Health Education e.g. capacity building of teachers.

Sch Feeding and Meals

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Provide school meals to targeted children from the most vulnerable, food – insecure regions and pockets of poverty.

Mobilize strategic partners for accelerated scale up and sustainability of School Feeding Programme.

Strengthen the promotion of Sanitation and Hygiene in Schools.

Promote the establishment of school gardens or livestock rearing, where appropriate, with focus on using the gardens to teach and demonstrate methods of safe food production.

Food preservation and preparation.

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Establishment of micro – economic enterprise in schools to enhance institutional capacity in order to access nutritionally adequate foods.

Promote time and energy saving technologies.

Safe Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

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The school community to ensure that safe water is available in the school. Possible water sources include rainwater harvesting, springs, borehole water and protected shallow wells, piped water schemes, pans and other sources.

Appropriate local level methods for water treatment to be put in place by filtration, boiling and chlorination.

SMS / BOGs /PTAs to ensure that water is stored safely to avoid any contamination.

Appropriate technology use in storage of water including plastic tanks, cement tanks and ordinary drums / water containers with all storage facilities being fitted with drawing taps to avoid contamination.

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Encourage learners to take part in provision and maintenance of clean safe water.

Learners / vendors who bring water to school to do so in clean containers.

Communities to be involved in and sensitized on the importance of provision and maintenance of water sources and facilities for each school.

In cases where safe water in not available appropriate water harvesting technologies should be put in place.

Child Health and Nutrition

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Monitoring of the health of learners on a regular basis.

Checking the immunization status of all learners entering the school.

Liaising with the MOPHS and parents to ensure that learners are immunized against common diseases.

Ensuring that learners are dewormed regularly. Provision of first aid and basics of child health. Training of teachers in first aid and basics of child

health Ensuring that pupils who fall sick in the school are

tested in the nearest health facilities but in consultation with parents

Creating a Health and Nutrition Promoting School

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To promote good health and hygiene among the learners, schools should:

Provide school based education on prevention of endemic conditions as well as care of the affected and infected.

Collect and keep (accurate and up to- date) comprehensive medical data on every learner in the school.

Establish health policies to provide guidelines regarding what takes place in case of health related incidences.

Organize for regular medical checkups of learners, for early detection and management of infectious diseases / outbreaks in collaboration with health service providers and local authorities.

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Have adequately trained teachers in health education and ensure working and adequate First Aid kits and facilities to provide emergency care in schools.

Promote environmental sanitation and hygiene practices in schools through regular health practices.

Promote and encourage the adoption of health promoting habits such as healthy eating, reduced risk taking behaviour associated with HIV / STD infections and avoidance of unplanned pregnancies, drug and substance abuse, violence and injury.

Provide adequate and safe water for drinking and use by learners and staff.

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Provide adequate sanitation facilities which are sensitive to gender and culture.

Protect children with special needs with regard to their health and hygiene by working closely with parents.

Undertake immediate steps to close the school when there is a threat of an epidemic outbreak.

Implement measures that protect those not yet infected from those who already show symptoms of infections of contagious diseases through isolation, quarantine and vaccination.

Indications that Learners are Healthy

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There are ways teachers can tell when learners are in good health by looking out for the following signs. Whether the learner: Is able to carry out routine learning activities in school,

homework and assignments without undue fatigue or emotional support

Is able to participate regularly in physical education and other physical activities in the school curriculum in addition to demonstrating skills in games and basic body movements appropriate for their age, sex and body type.

Shows progressive gain in weight and height without unusually wide variations.

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Has smooth clear skin, without discoloration, eruptions, or excessive dryness or oiliness.

Has good appetite Is interested in and enthusiastic about most

activities that are popular with classmates Is able to control emotions like other children.

What have we learnt?

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Learners with diverse backgrounds and abilities are particularly susceptible to poor nutrition, health and sanitation.

Schools can effectively deliver some health, nutrition and sanitation services if they address problems that are prevalent and recognized as important within the community and are simple, safe and familiar.

Effective school nutrition, health and sanitation practices can be valuable means for teaching learners important life skills.

Skills- based health education programmes focus on changing specific health behaviour that is related to health needs of both girls and boys (gender sensitive). Learners actively participate in learning and more importantly, how to turn their knowledge into immediate actions.

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Through Sch based health education learners develop their knowledge, attitudes and life skills. They can then make decisions and take positive actions to promote healthy and nutrition promoting behaviour and environments.

Some of the important life skills that learners need include communication and interpersonal skills, decision making and critical thinking skills, as well as coping and self management skills. These life skills help learners to deal with such issues as the prevention of substance abuse, as well as to promote healthy nutrition, sanitation hygiene and mental health. They are particularly valuable in preventing HIV and AIDS as well as reducing stigmatization for those who are affected.

Some of the ways we can integrate a skills – based education programmes into our teaching is through using interactive learning approaches.

What can schools do?

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Be action informed and active. Establish partnerships. Provide leadership Introduce open communication. Use participatory teaching methods. Use innovative teaching sessions. Use gender – responsive approaches. Deal with culturally sensitive content. Emphasize the value of peer based support. Actively use skills – based education.

Conclusion

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Our schools should be examples for the community and our learners. We should not only teach good health, nutrition and hygiene habits; we should also practice them by being good role models.

THANK YOU

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