Abstract
Cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and teenage pregnancy have been increasing among adolescents in the Philippines. School nurses (SNs) are expected to deliver quality healthcare services and provide relevant sexual health education for students. This study explores the current situation of providing sexual health education by SNs in Muntinlupa City toward health promotion and gains understanding of school health issues in the Philippines. This study employed a cross sectional research design using anonymous self-administered questionnaires, which were distributed to 23 SNs. Then, a semi-structured interview was conducted with them in Muntinlupa City. Among the 23 SNs, 30.4% of them were affiliated to high schools. The most frequent health issues experienced by primary school students were malnutrition, gastrointestinal pain due to hunger, upper respiratory tract infection, and poor hygiene. In high schools, the most frequent health issues were poor mental health, malnutrition and early pregnancy. SNs lacked knowledge on STI, mental health, sex education, safe sex, teenage pregnancy and nutritional care for children. In conclusion, SNs lack knowledge about sex education (early pregnancy and STIs) and mental health. Therefore, seminars should be provided for all SNs to gain adequate knowledge and skills to teach students of all types of school.
Highlights
In the Philippines, the average number of people newly diagnosed with HIV per day is 31
A health center in Muntinlupa City has grappled with health issues among adolescents using the Adolescent and Youth Health Program by the Department of Health in the Philippines since 2001 and has started a peer education program on HIV/AIDS and teenage pregnancy for young people in the community since 2017 [5,6]
23 school nurses (SNs) who worked at public schools and participated in conference for SNs organized by the Muntinlupa City Health Office were enrolled
Summary
In the Philippines, the average number of people newly diagnosed with HIV per day is 31. While the Department of Education has started providing health education in schools using MAPEH since 2010, students only learned about sexual behavior and STIs when they reach grade eight (13 years old) and learned about pregnancy when they reach grade 10 (15 years old) [7,8,9]. Health centers and teachers and school nurses (SNs) should play an important role in health promotion for students in the Philippines [15]. There is a possibility that SNs play a crucial role in offering health education to prevent STIs and teenage pregnancy in students. The nursing practice in the school setting in promoting health for younger generations in the Philippines has not been fully explored and studied
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