INTRODUCTION
The acronym “School Health Programme” (SHP) refers to all aspects of the school program that contribute to the comprehension, upkeep, and improvement of the health of the student body (Odeyemi&Chukwu, 2015). According to Adebayo and Onadeko (2016), the School Health Program (SHP) is a collection of policies, procedures, and activities that are designed to protect and promote the well-being of the student body and staff at schools. Numerous studies have demonstrated that participation in a school health program can cut down on the number of students engaging in behaviors that are harmful to their health and positively influence academic performance. The program’s objectives are to improve the overall health of children and to enable them to derive the greatest possible benefit from their educational experiences. School Health Services (SHS), Healthful School Environment (HSE), Skilled-based Health Education (SBHE), School Feeding Services (SFS), and School, Home, and Community Relationships (SHCR) are some of the various components that make up the School Health Programme (FME, 2006). According to Adebayo and Onadeko (2016), one of the primary goals of the SHP is to obtain an improvement in the health of school children and to ensure that they are provided with optimal care at all times in order for them to attain their physical and intellectual potentials, including their maximum benefits from health providers, teachers, and the school environment. Another one of the primary goals of the SHP is to ensure that there is a reduction in the number of students who drop out of school. Odeyemi and Chukwu (2015 went into further detail about the school’s provision of advisory and counselling services for the school community as well as for the parents of the students. These services include pre-entry medical screening, routine health screening/examination, school health records, a sick bay, first aid, and referral services. It is recommended that each school establish a school health committee, which is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the implementation is successful. (Adeniran et al., 2016).
The implementation of the School Health Program has the potential to ensure that children receive care that is both effective and standardized, with the goal of reducing significant health risks that are prevalent among children. According to Adebayo and Onadeko (2016), the only way that SHP can be achieved is by promoting SHP in the school population. This is a critical step in improving the quality of education and realizing the National Policy on Education. Adebayo and Onadeko believe that this is the only way that SHP can be achieved. In addition, Chavanet al. (2018) acknowledged children as a primary population and schools as appropriate settings for health promotion. They did so in order to highlight the role that schools play in the students’ lives as well as the level of influence they have on those lives.
The findings of numerous studies and evaluations have conclusively demonstrated that the establishment of health clinics within schools is an efficient use of public funds. According to the findings of a study that was carried out by the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University, the utilization of a school-based health center can lead to a reduction in the amount of money spent on medical expenses related to inpatient drugs and emergency departments. It is the responsibility of the school health program to address all aspects of the total school health activities that have contributed to the understanding, maintenance, and improvement of the health of the school population, in particular the students’ learning environment that is safe and conducive for learning. Olatunya , Oseni , Ogundele, Oyelami (2019)
School health programs are defined by the American School Health Association (2011) as “those activities and procedures that contribute to the maintenance and improvement of the health of school children and staff.” These activities and procedures include health services, healthful living, and health education. Many aspects of society, including its institutions, can have an effect on whether or not children and adolescents grow up healthy. The school is the second most influential environment in a child’s life, after their own family. The primary institution that bears responsibility for the maturation of children and adolescents all over the world is the school (UNESCO, 2022)
More than 95 percent of the nation’s children and adolescents have direct interaction with their schools.
individuals between the ages of 5 and 17, for approximately six hours a day, and for up to thirteen years of their most formative years in terms of their social, psychological, physical, and intellectual development. The academic success of young people is strongly correlated with their overall health, and the overall health of young people is strongly correlated with their academic success. As a result, ensuring that students maintain a healthy lifestyle is an essential component of the role that schools play.
The goal of the school health program is to improve the overall health status of the student body as well as to prevent and protect them from getting sick in the first place. This will allow the students to get the most out of the education they receive. The school offers a one-of-a-kind opportunity for health education and serves as a means of laying a solid foundation for the healthy practices that will be practiced by the adult population of any nation in the future (Federal Ministry of Education, 2006).
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