School Education Saga-VI: School kids’ health profiling goes for a toss

Hyderabad: The well-intended regular health checkups for school children in government schools have gone for a toss in the last nine years, leaving the headmasters of government-run schools looking after lakhs of children high and dry, as they are unable to implement the programme in line with its objectives.

The reason is the lack of logistical support from the Telangana State Medical and Health Department (TSMHD) over the past nine years.

According to sources in the Telangana State School Education Department (TSSED), non-availability of doctors at the Primary Health Centres (PHCs) is making the task of maintaining the health profile of children difficult. “By and large, the creating of health profiles and maintaining those records had turned into a managed ritual in the last nine years, rather than fulfilling its true objectives,” pointed out sources.

Teacher MLC Alugubelli Narsireddy said that he had written many letters and took up the issue with the State government several times to impress on the necessity of the appointment of doctors at the PHCs. It did not happen. “Currently, Asha workers or staff nurses of the PHC conduct the basic health check of the students. Students are sent to the nearby Area hospitals if they complain of any problems related to vision, or suffering from anaemia and other such cases,” he said, adding, “Some efforts were made way back in 2014-15 to print the health cards for maintaining the records of the students as part of the programme. But even that has faced problem due to non-availability of doctors.”

Clarifying this, the headmaster of a government high school in Malkajgiri pointed out, “A health card of the student has to be signed by a doctor. When there are no doctors, who will sign them,” he asked. Also, when asked about the school bag burden, he pointed out, “Other staff deputed for health checks would not be in a position to conduct medical examinations related to problems of spine and shoulders, knees, back and other issues caused by carrying heavy school bags. Also, a non-medical doctor’s examination could become part of a recorded health profile of a student,” he opined. State principal secretary for Education, B Venkatesham told The Hans India that the children’s health profile in the academic calendar envisages the intent to conduct the programme.

However, lack of policy decisions at the highest level to bring the TSMHD and the TSSED to make coordinated efforts of planning, including roping in the doctors from the government, private and charitable societies run hospitals, and medical colleges, requisitioning the services of medical house surgeons, and holding health examination camps twice a year is what might help to overcome the shortage of doctors in PHCs to create health records of the students, felt some school headmasters.

Alugubelli Narsireddy hoped that this would change as the current state government is mulling to implement the programme with doctors being roped in with assistance from the Centre.