scholarly journals A vibrant reflection of the revised integrated school health policy with a lens on substance use

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Shuro ◽  
Firdouza Waggie
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
School Environment ◽  
School Health ◽  
Substance Use Prevention ◽  
Social Barriers ◽  
Scarce Resources ◽  
Optimal Health ◽  
Political Approach ◽  
School Health Policy

Substance use is rife amongst adolescents, including learners. Learners are easily exposed to substances with onset as early as 10 years and average age of drug experimentation is 12 years in South Africa. This results in many negative health and social outcomes, a challenge as far as the achievement of global, regional and national goals such as quality education. The revised Integrated School Health Policy (ISHP) is a policy operating within the school environment aiming to address health and social barriers of learners and improve optimal health, comprising a vague action component on substance use prevention. This article is an opinion piece, which uses the Walt and Gilson model as an operational framework to analyse the revised ISHP within the lens of substance use. It assesses the four interrelated aspects: policy context, policy content, policy actors, and the policy process. The ISHP is placed within schools where adolescents are found and has the potential to reduce many health challenges such as substance use amongst learners. However, some issues are left to chance, such as health education on substance use prevention stated to only begin at Grade 4 (10 years), little mention of parental involvement, limited interplay amongst actors, limited investment in upskilling educators on dealing with substance use, scarce resources for implementation in all developmental phases and provinces to address substance use. Intervention can be more comprehensive with an intersectoral political approach needed to ensure that implementation addresses all multiple levels of influence of substance use amongst learners and the numerous health and social barriers.

scholarly journals A systematic review of school health policy measurement tools: implementation determinants and outcomes

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriella M. McLoughlin ◽  
Peg Allen ◽  
Callie Walsh-Bailey ◽  
Ross C. Brownson
Keyword(s):  
Health Policy ◽  
Policy Implementation ◽  
School Health ◽  
School Policy ◽  
Implementation Processes ◽  
Implementation Outcomes ◽  
Policy Measurement ◽  
Measurement Tools ◽  
School Health Policy ◽  
Health Policy Implementation

Abstract Background Governments in some countries or states/provinces mandate school-based policies intended to improve the health and well-being of primary and secondary students and in some cases the health of school staff. Examples include mandating a minimum time spent per week in programmed physical activity, mandating provision of healthy foods and limiting fat content of school meals, and banning tobacco products or use on school campuses. Although school health researchers have studied whether schools, districts, or states/provinces are meeting requirements, it is unclear to what extent implementation processes and determinants are assessed. The purposes of the present systematic review of quantitative measures of school policy implementation were to (1) identify quantitative school health policy measurement tools developed to measure implementation at the school, district, or state/provincial levels; (2) describe the policy implementation outcomes and determinants assessed and identify the trends in measurement; and (3) assess pragmatic and psychometric properties of identified implementation measures to understand their quality and suitability for broader application. Methods Peer-reviewed journal articles published 1995–2020 were included if they (1) had multiple-item quantitative measures of school policy implementation and (2) addressed overall wellness, tobacco, physical activity, nutrition, obesity prevention, or mental health/bullying/social-emotional learning. The final sample comprised 86 measurement tools from 67 peer-review articles. We extracted study characteristics, such as psychometric and pragmatic measure properties, from included articles based on three frameworks: (1) Implementation Outcomes Framework, (2) Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, and (3) Policy Implementation Determinants Framework. Results Most implementation tools were developed to measure overall wellness policies which combined multiple policy topics (n = 35, 40%) and were in survey form (n = 75, 87%). Fidelity was the most frequently prevalent implementation outcome (n = 70, 81%), followed by adoption (n = 32, 81%). The implementation determinants most assessed were readiness for implementation, including resources (n = 43, 50%), leadership (n = 42, 49%), and policy communication (n = 41, 48%). Overall, measures were low-cost and had easy readability. However, lengthy tools and lack of reported validity/reliability data indicate low transferability. Conclusions Implementation science can contribute to more complete and rigorous assessment of school health policy implementation processes, which can improve implementation strategies and ultimately the intended health benefits. Several high-quality measures of implementation determinants and implementation outcomes can be applied to school health policy implementation assessment. Dissemination and implementation science researchers can also benefit from measurement experiences of school health researchers.

scholarly journals Politics, Pedagogy and Practice in School Health Policy

2011 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn Vander Schee ◽  
Michael Gard
Keyword(s):  
Health Policy ◽  
School Health ◽  
School Health Policy

School Health Policy & Practice

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
School Environment ◽  
School Health ◽  
Medication Administration ◽  
Policy Practice ◽  
Nutrition Services ◽  
7Th Edition ◽  
School Health Policy ◽  
Family And Community Involvement

Significantly revised and updated, the new 7th edition provides the latest guidelines for developing health programs, including nutrition services, medication administration, physicial activity and sports, and the school environment. New in the 7th edition: New content on school health in medical education, family and community involvement, staff wellness, and more Updates on the role of the school physician, school nurse, and guidance on school-based screening, serving populations with unique needs such as allergies and asthma, mental health and social services, and program assessment and evaluation

scholarly journals Policy Forum: School Health Policy in North Carolina

2008 ◽  
Vol 69 (6) ◽  
pp. 460-460
Author(s):  
Thomas C. Ricketts ◽  
Christine Nielsen
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
School Health ◽  
School Health Policy ◽  
Policy Forum

scholarly journals School Health Policy in North Carolina

2008 ◽  
Vol 69 (6) ◽  
pp. 461-466
Author(s):  
Paula Hudson Collins ◽  
Howard N. Lee
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
School Health ◽  
School Health Policy

scholarly journals A systematic review of school health policy measurement tools: Implementation determinants and outcomes

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriella M McLoughlin ◽  
Peg Allen ◽  
Callie Walsh-Bailey ◽  
Ross C. Brownson
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Policy Implementation ◽  
School Health ◽  
School Policy ◽  
Implementation Processes ◽  
Implementation Outcomes ◽  
Measurement Tools ◽  
School Health Policy ◽  
Health Policy Implementation

Abstract Background Governments in some countries or states/provinces mandate school-based policies intended to improve the health and well-being of primary and secondary students, and in some cases the health of school staff. Examples include mandating a minimum time spent per week in programmed physical activity, mandating provision of healthy foods and limiting fat content of school meals, and banning tobacco products or use on school campuses. Although school health researchers have studied whether schools, districts, or states/provinces are meeting requirements, it is unclear to what extent implementation processes and determinants are assessed. The purposes of the present systematic review of quantitative measures of school policy implementation are to identify quantitative measures of implementation determinants and Proctor model implementation outcomes and assess pragmatic and psychometric properties of such measures. Methods Peer-reviewed journal articles published 1995–2020 were included if they: 1) had multiple-item quantitative measures of school policy implementation; and 2) addressed overall wellness, tobacco, physical activity, nutrition, obesity prevention, and mental health/bullying/social-emotional learning. The final sample comprised 86 measurement tools from 67 peer-review articles. We extracted study characteristics, such as psychometric and pragmatic measure properties, from included articles based on three frameworks: Implementation Outcomes Framework, 2) Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, and 3) Policy Implementation Determinants Framework. Results Most implementation tools were developed to measure overall wellness policies which combined multiple policy topics (n = 35, 40%) and were in survey form (n = 75, 87%). Fidelity was the most frequently prevalent implementation outcome (n = 70, 81%), followed by adoption (n = 32, 81%). The implementation determinants most assessed were readiness for implementation, including resources (n = 43, 50%), leadership (n = 42, 49%), and policy communication (n = 41, 48%). Overall, measures were low-cost and had easy readability. However, lengthy tools and lack of reported validity/reliability data indicate low transferability. Conclusions Implementation science can contribute to more complete and rigorous assessment of school health policy implementation processes, which can improve implementation strategies and ultimately the intended health benefits. Several high-quality measures of implementation determinants and implementation outcomes can be applied to school health policy implementation assessment. D&I researchers can also benefit from measurement experiences of school health researchers.

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