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Wednesday, January 31, 2007 Community Health teams will re-commence
Schools Screening for Diabetes on February 1st, this time targeting the primary
schools, more specifically grade six students. Community Paediatrician and
Manager of the National Child and Adolescent Health Program, Dr. Jacqueline
Bird, says this group is especially targeted because of the increasing number of
children being diagnosed with onset adult diabetes, caused by inactive or
unhealthy lifestyles.
We have decided that to target the younger children. It may be more useful to
go into the school and target those who have risk factors for that type of
diabetes.
Of course the biggest risk factor would be weight. So we are going into the
schools
to do weight and height and then to calculate body mass index, Dr. Bird said.
No blood test is involved, she said, so parents do not have to be worried
their children are going to be pricked without their consent.
Dr. Bird is encouraging parents and guardians to sign and return the parental
consent letters that have been distributed to various schools. She encouraged
them to cooperate and ensure that their children participate.
It would be foolish not to take part in something that is being offered of
benefit to your child. The screeners are the same nurses who your children have
seen for years in the health centres and there is no invasion of the body or
anything like that - we are going to be weighing the children fully dressed,
said Dr. Bird.
While the screening exercise is expected to last a few weeks, the duration will
depend on the execution of the process. Other screenings for diabetes have been
conducted in secondary schools and the public and private sectors.
The screenings form part of the island wide Universal Health Care diabetes pilot
screening project.
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