Healthy Populations Institute, Dalhousie University, 1318 Robie St, P.O. Box 15000, Halifax, NS B3H 4R2, Canada.
School of Health and Human Performance, Dalhousie University, 1318 Robie St, P.O. Box 15000, Halifax, NS B3H 4R2, Canada.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Mar 25;18(7):3411. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18073411.
The World Health Organization has identified the school community as a key setting for health promotion efforts, laying out its priorities in the Health-Promoting Schools (HPS) framework. This framework offers a comprehensive approach that has been adopted in countries around the globe, with defining characteristics focused around the school curriculum and environment. Nova Scotia (NS) adopted the HPS framework at a provincial level in 2005, but it has been variably implemented. We aimed to identify, categorize, and broadly describe the environment for HPS policies in NS. Four iterative steps were employed: (1) a scan of government and regional school websites to identify publicly available policies; (2) consultations with provincial departments with respect to policy relevance and scope; (3) cross-comparison of policies by two reviewers; (4) compilation of policies into an online database. Seventy policies at the provincial level and 509 policies across eight public school regions were identified. Policies focusing on a 'safe school environment' were most common; those addressing mental health and well-being, physical activity, nutrition and healthy eating, and substance use were among those least commonly identified. This scan provides a comprehensive overview of HPS-relevant policies in NS, along with relative proportions and growth over time. Our findings suggest areas of policy action and inaction that may help or hinder the implementation of HPS principles and values.
世界卫生组织已将学校社区确定为促进健康工作的重要场所，并在健康促进学校（HPS）框架中列出了其优先事项。该框架提供了一种全面的方法，已在全球范围内的国家采用，其特点集中在学校课程和环境上。新斯科舍省（NS）于 2005 年在省级层面采用了 HPS 框架，但实施情况各不相同。我们旨在确定、分类并广泛描述 NS 内 HPS 政策的环境。采用了四个迭代步骤：（1）扫描政府和地区学校网站，以识别公开可用的政策；（2）就政策相关性和范围与省级部门进行磋商；（3）两名审阅者对政策进行交叉比较；（4）将政策编制成在线数据库。在省级层面确定了 70 项政策，在 8 个公立学校地区确定了 509 项政策。以“安全学校环境”为重点的政策最为常见；而那些针对心理健康和幸福感、体育活动、营养和健康饮食以及物质使用的政策则很少被提及。该扫描提供了 NS 内与 HPS 相关的政策的全面概述，以及随时间的相对比例和增长。我们的研究结果表明了政策行动和不作为的领域，这些领域可能有助于或阻碍 HPS 原则和价值观的实施。
