Afrigather Mrs Regina Diergaardt, college principal of the Gobabis Main College, shares the story of how her college has remained a well being selling college via the years regardless of quite a few challenges.
“I have realized that if we take HPSI significantly, we are going to see a change within the behaviour of our learners who in return take what they’ve discovered at college again to the society, and collectively we are able to promote good well being in our communities.”
She alluded to the challenges in implementing the well being selling college initiative however famous that these will not be insurmountable with the ‘proper thoughts set’. She shared a few of these challenges hoping to inspire different faculties to persist in making their faculties well being selling.
“The ablution blocks and water strain have been only a nightmare with 1,100 learners of whom the bulk don’t have ablution amenities at dwelling. You possibly can think about what would occur at college exterior and across the premises. We have been drained and discouraged by kids who’re doing the alternative of what we taught them. In 2022, we have been downgraded from silver to bronze. We have been even cautioned that we might lose the bronze as nicely,” mentioned Mrs Diergaardt.
She mobilized her workers to rally behind the HPSI and though not everybody was totally on board, she solid forward together with her group who dedicated to implementing the HPSI standards. The poor score motivated the varsity to enhance via a couple of sensible and modern interventions.
The HPSI was launched in Namibia in 1998 and the MoHSS and MoEAC have been working collaboratively in guaranteeing that the varsity well being programme is cascaded to all Namibian faculties. The Omaheke area is the one area with all of its 47 faculties taking part within the HPSI. The colleges are to satisfy a set of standards graded in 4 classes as bronze, silver, gold, or platinum. The bronze stage is the elementary stage and consists of:
- Availability of secure consuming water.
- Sanitation amenities:
- bathroom amenities must be maintained in good working order and hygienic
- situations.
- separate bogs obtainable to be used by lecturers, boys, and ladies.
- bogs with a wash hand basin, operating water, cleaning soap and a hygienic methodology of hand drying obtainable (resembling paper towels, and many others).
- Entry to well being companies and college feeding/meals and vitamin companies (when attainable).
- Expertise-based well being training for pupils.
- Well being-related college insurance policies.
- Growth of the varsity well being constitution.
- Show of well being messages in school rooms, bogs, and see boards.
- A secure and clear college setting.
- Set up college well being golf equipment, and create a Well being Nook in every classroom, library or anywhere that’s accessible to all of the learners, lecturers, and college personnel.
- College canteens to offer secure nutritious meals.
- College vitamin program to be in place.
- Oral well being programme to be in place.
The upper classes will embody the above, with extra standards to enhance the well being and wellbeing of learners and all the college inhabitants.
Yearly, the Regional College Well being Taskforce will do an evaluation to guage faculties towards the set standards. The suggestions from the inner evaluation are then used to enhance the varsity’s efficiency in guaranteeing that each one standards are met, and the varsity both maintains its grade or there may be consideration for a better grade or a downgrade. This course of is validated by a group of exterior evaluators, who’re chosen from the Nationwide College Well being Taskforce and/or from different Regional College Well being Taskforces.
Regardless of the impression of COVID-19 on the Omaheke HPSI, this course of is a precursor to motiving faculties to proceed taking part within the initiative. Yearly, the area organizes a prestigious award ceremony to acknowledge the efforts and exhausting work of the faculties.
Though Mrs. Diergaardt’s college was downgraded to bronze up to now, this 12 months the varsity obtained the platinum award. Regardless of that indisputable fact that the varsity is located in one of many impoverished communities in Gobabis, the varsity well being group determined that ‘we may be a college of excellence on this area, competing towards personal faculties, even when it must be, difficult faculties nationally as nicely’.
Mrs. Diergaardt mentioned that they wanted to determine the challenges and deal with them. These included learners who have been taking bathroom paper dwelling, throwing stones in bathroom pots, enjoying with cleaning soap, sitting exterior while ablution amenities are opened, and learners not bathing for days as a result of their circumstances.
“I assigned our life expertise trainer to some faculties within the area, to take a look at what they’re doing, sharing greatest practices particularly with their ablution amenities. She knowledgeable me that there are good concepts however with our setup we wanted to do a couple of changes and take it step-by-step, being constant and affected person.”
The varsity board and oldsters have been mobilized to help fundraising efforts to vary the picture and setting of the faculties as a part of the varsity well being initiative. “We additionally agreed to implement the standards of HPSI, to make it our personal and to start out with the fundamentals”.
“I noticed that after we put our hearts into the HPSI, it’s not a pricey course of. All we’d like is dedicated folks with passionate hearts.” She additional mentioned that there’s a lot that may be performed with out cash particularly participating stakeholders to deal with and educate learners and workers on totally different threat components affecting younger folks together with violence, hygiene, sexual and reproductive well being
(SRH) and the usage of alcohol and tobacco.
Because of these effort the varsity’s wellness committee and well being prefects have been strengthened and are the driving drive behind the success of the varsity’s well being selling initiative. The varsity additionally raised funds to construct extra school rooms to make sure that all learners are attending college within the morning hours which resulted within the discontinuation of the afternoon lessons. “With the permission of the then Director of Schooling, Mr. Pecka Semba and in session with the Ministry of Works, we constructed zinc lessons, and taught in tents simply to make sure that all of the learners have been coming to highschool within the morning.” The varsity noticed that the learners who have been attending afternoon lessons weren’t performing optimally. “We noticed that learners are enjoying the entire day, after which are soiled and drained when coming to highschool.”
The varsity additionally obtained funding from a neighborhood member who donated bathtubs, toiletries, soaps, and sanitary merchandise to allow learners who’re unable to tub at dwelling, to take action at college.
“We modified the picture of the varsity by re portray the varsity, making the setting enticing and pleasant. At the moment, as I’m talking, everyone seems to be on board and pleased to be related to Gobabis Main College.”
She proudly recommended her educating and help workers and a few dad and mom for his or her stage of dedication which contributed immensely to a clear, wholesome, and germ-free setting.
WHO along with UNESCO, UNFPA and UNICEF has been supporting the varsity well being programme in any respect ranges. By way of this help an MoU between the 2 lead ministries is in place with a practical coordination mechanism at each nationwide and regional ranges. Trainings to facilitate the implementation of the varsity well being programme in all 14 areas have been supplied and though the effectiveness of the programme differs within the totally different areas, there may be curiosity from most areas to have the HPSI carried out as a part of the varsity well being programme.
