DEVELOPING AND SUPPORTING SCHOOL-HEALTH PROGRAMS - ROLE FOR FAMILY PHYSICIANS

PROBLEM BEING ADDRESSED School staff are anxious about the demands on their time associated with a perceived increase in health problems amo ng their students. OBJECTIVE OF PROGRAM To respond to these concerns b y developing a health committee in two elementary schools and one high school. The health committee could perform needs assessments and, wit h the results of these assessments and a careful literature review, co uld develop health policies and procedures appropriate to the school e nvironment and to evolving community expectations. MAIN COMPONENTS OF PROGRAM A committee of four family physicians (nonremunerated parents of students), one of whom served as Chair, four school administrators, and one part-time remunerated nurse practitioner explored aspects of illness in the schools. They studied approaches to acute and chronic s tudent illness; emergency response; management of children with specia l needs; environmental safety; health promotion; and the availability and quality of resources for learning about health for teachers, admin istrators, parents, and students. CONCLUSION Opportunities exist for f amily physicians to expand their involvement in child and adolescent h ealth in schools. Involvement should be collaborative and multidiscipl inary and reflect community interests and needs.