M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, July 3: A one-day training programme for school health and wellness was held in the conference hall at the civil surgeon office in Daltonganj on Saturday. It was attended by the block education extension officers, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, block programme managers, medical officers and others.
A former civil surgeon but at present district leprosy officer Dr Anil Kumar Srivastav chaired the meeting as Palamu civil surgeon Dr Anil Kumar was away for a programme of the DC.
The district programme manager Deepak Gupta said the participants were told of the purpose, objective and utility of the school health and wellness programme and how to go about it.
The school health and wellness programme is a joint venture of the ministry of health and the ministry of human resources and development under the aegis of the Ayushman Bharat.
Civil surgeon Dr Anil Kumar briefing lagatar24.com on Sunday said, “School going boys and girls have their own health issues which many don’t easily share with their parents. They are usually confused over how to and what to share with their parents or school teachers.”
“This school health and wellness programme aims at removing their hesitation and build their confidence to share their health problem,” added the civil surgeon Dr Anil Kumar.
The transformation of childhood into adolescence when hormones play a major role causes enough changes in the behaviour and attitude of the school students and that has to be observed and helped through the school health and wellness programme.
District programme manager Deepak Gupta informed that there are 16 indicators on which this school health and wellness programme rests on.
Gupta said these indicators include hygiene, menstrual hygiene, early marriage and child bearing, mental anxiety, depression, suicide, nutrition, physical activity, drugs and abuse like smoking, tobacco chewing, yoga etc.
Civil surgeon Kumar said, “We are gearing up in consonance with the education officials so as when this school health and wellness programme gets launched in the state, Palamu makes a smooth take off.”
Gupta said this programme is for government schools having students in the age group of 10 to 19 only.
Each such school has to select two ambassadors among the teachers, one of whom is to be a lady teacher. Similarly each class having students of the age group 10 to 19 will have two messengers, one of the two is to be a girl and in case the school is all boys or all girls, there is a relaxation in the selection of the messengers.
Every Tuesday there will be this school health and wellness programme with one box ready by the side for boys and girls to drop in any of the health issues that they want to be addressed to without their identity being known.
Civil surgeon Dr Anil Kumar said we will ask our school teachers to convince their students not to bother with their identity as for any assistance to their health problems their identity will not be any revealed.
Dr Anil Kumar said a girl student who has her first onset of the period remains tense and her behaviour during the days of her period becomes noticeable where this school health and wellness programme will help her to overcome any stress arising from the first bout of menstruation.