Stress-related Problem
Conditions
Keywords
School health services, Physical therapy modalities, Mental health, Child, Adolescent
Brief summary
School stress and performance requirements have been shown to contribute to mental illness among children and young people. Student health teams have an important role regarding mental health of children and young people. Swedish student health teams include various health and pedagogical professionals, but physiotherapists are uncommon, despite the good effects school-related physical activity interventions have had on reducing anxiety and improving well-being in children and young people. Haga School, Dals-Ed has now employed physiotherapists as part of the student health team to support students in learning to define, reduce and manage stress. The purpose of the research project is to investigate changes in perceived stress level and stress-related symptoms, as well as study results and absence from school during two years for students in grades 4 to 9 at Haga School. A questionnaire will be sent out on four occasions over two years. Group level statistics on study results and school absence will be compared with years previous to the introduction of the school physiotherapist. The research contributes to increased knowledge about effects of having a physiotherapist as part of a student health team in Sweden.
Detailed description
School stress and performance requirements have been shown to contribute to mental illness among children and young people. Student health teams have an important role regarding mental health of children and young people. Swedish student health teams include various health and pedagogical professionals, but physiotherapists are uncommon, despite the good effects school-related physical activity interventions have had on reducing anxiety and improving well-being in children and young people. Haga School, Dals-Ed has now employed physiotherapists as part of the student health team to support students in learning to define, reduce and manage stress. The purpose of the research project is to investigate changes in perceived stress level and stress-related symptoms, as well as study results and absence from school during two years for students in grades 4 to 9 at Haga School. A questionnaire will be sent out on four occasions over two years. Group level statistics on study results and school absence will be compared with years previous to the introduction of the school physiotherapist. The research contributes to increased knowledge about effects of having a physiotherapist as part of a student health team in Sweden.
Interventions
None listed
Sponsors
Dals-Ed Municipality
Vastra Gotaland Region
Study design
Observational model
COHORT
Time perspective
PROSPECTIVE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
9 Years to 16 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Registered students in grades 4-9 at Haga School in Dals-Ed, Sweden
Exclusion criteria
* None
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in perceived stress | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Measured with single question on questionnaire with 4 possible levels to choose from, ranging from not at all to very much. |
| Reasons for stress | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question about stressors chosen from a list of 7 stressors or no stressors |
| School stress factors School stress factors School stress factors | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question about factors that contribute to perceived stress in school, chosen from a list of 16 stressors. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Headache prevalence | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question regarding prevalence of headache during the last month with 5 possible levels, ranging from never to always. |
| Stomach-ache prevalence | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question regarding prevalence of stomach-ache during the last month with 5 possible levels, ranging from never to always. |
| Prevalence of irritability | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question regarding irritation or bad mood during the last month with 5 possible levels ranging from never to always. |
| Prevalence of depressive feelings | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question regarding feeling sad or depressed feelings during the last month with 5 possible levels ranging from never to always. |
| Sleeping habits | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question about sleep quality with 5 possible answers ranging from very bad to very good. |
| Stress-related symptoms | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups | Measured with number of stress-related symptoms chosen from a list of 7 symptoms or no symptoms. |
| Physical activity | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question about amount of physical activity during the last 7 days, with 8 possible levels, ranging from less than 1 hour to more than 10 hours |
| Transportation to school | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question about commuting to school with four possible answers, walking, bicycling, bus, car/moped. |
| School absence | Change between school-year 2021-2022 and 2023-2024. | Group level school absence retrieved from school statistics. Measured in number of days. days. |
| Study results | Change between school-year 2021-2022 and 2023-2024. | Group level study results for each grade. Measured in grades E-A. |
| Eligibility upper-level secondary school | Change between school-year 2021-2022 and 2023-2024. | Group level eligibility for upper-level secondary school programs for students in Grade 9. Measured in number of students eligible for upper-level secondary school. |
| Well-being at school | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups. | Single question regarding well-being at school with 5 possible levels, ranging from very bad to very good. |
| Prevalence of specific stress-related symptoms | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups | Number of students who report each specific symptom from a list of 7 symptoms or no symptoms. |
| Stress-alleviating factors | Change between inclusion and 8 month, 12 and 20 month follow-ups | Single question regarding handling of stress symptoms, chosen from list of 9 suggestions or open-ended answer. |
Countries
Sweden
Outcome results
None listed