A SCHOOL NURSING HEALTH SCREENING PROGRAM IN TURKEY: A PILOT STUDY

Abstract

Aim: With the school health nursing screening program, which was carried out as a pilot study, it was aimed to examine the health status of school children and the affecting factors.
 Method: This study was conducted with 115 third- and fourth-grade students in a state primary school in Istanbul. Within the scope of the health screening program, the students underwent a three-stage evaluation including growth assessment, blood pressure measurement, and physical examination. Examination findings were recorded in a standard form and analyzed using chi-square test and logistic regression analysis. 
 Results: It was determined that 18.3% of the students in the study were overweight and 17.3% were obese. Evaluation revealed dental caries in 53.9% of the students, vision problems in 35.7%, dirt in the outer ear/ear canal in 33.3%, runny nose in 27%, swollen lymph nodes in 14.8%, cough in 13%, nail biting in 11.3%, itchy skin in 9.6%, poor posture in 7%, and head lice or nits in 6.1%. Student age was associated with the prevalence of dental caries, nasal discharge, and dirt in the outer ear/ear canal (p ≤ 0.05). 
 Conclusion and Suggestions: The study results indicate that regular health screening is important in identifying student health problems, with dental caries, runny nose, and dirt in the outer ear/ear canal being the most important health problems detected during screening. In addition, it is noteworthy that the rates of overweight and obesity are high in children.