Table 1.
Current School Health Interventions in Tanzania.
| Curriculum-based interventions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name of the Intervention | Target group | Mode of delivery | Coverage | |
| Science (includes sexual and reproductive health, hygiene and sanitation,) | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting both girls and boys | Delivered by trained teachers (3–4 classes per week) | Nationwide | |
| Physical Education and Personality | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting both girls and boys | Delivered by trained teachers (3 classes per week) | Nationwide | |
| Life Skills | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting both girls and boys | Delivered by trained teachers (3–4 classes per week) | Nationwide | |
| Guidance and Counselling | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting both girls and boys | Delivered by trained teachers using guidelines prepared by the MoEVT, MoHSW and other relevant stakeholders | Tanga, Lindi, Mtwara, Mbeya, Iringa, Ruvuma, Morogoro and Kilimanjaro. | |
| Non-curriculum-based interventions | ||||
| Type of intervention | Target group | Mode of delivery | Coverage | |
| BCG Vaccination | Targets girls and boys aged <7 years | During school enrolment teachers should check whether children have been immunized with BCG. If a child is suspected of not receiving this, the child is then referred to a health facility to be immunized | Nationwide | |
| Tetanus Toxoid (TT) Vaccination | Target age: 15 years (STD VI–VII) | Teachers should check girls’ immunization cards and refer any girl who has not been immunized with TT to a health facility for immunization | Nationwide | |
| Student Health Assessment (SHA) | Pre-primary (5–6 years) targeting girlsand boys Primary school girls and boys | Health workers are supposed to visit every primary school annually to conduct student health assessments e.g. vision checks, height and weight, blood pressure checks | Nationwide | |
| First Aid Services | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting boys and girls | Health workers should provide first aid (usually in their health facility) when there is an emergency | Nationwide | |
| Schoolgirls’ Pregnancy Check | Older pupils (STD V–VII) targeting girls of reproductive age | If a teacher suspects that a girl in the school is pregnant, all girls of reproductive age should be screened for pregnancy. A female teacher (or the school matron if there is one) performs the initial check by conducting a pelvic abdominal palpation and those suspected of being pregnant are sent to the nearest health facility for a pregnancy test | Nationwide | |
| School Environment (includes WASH programme) | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting boys and girls | Teachers should supervise the students to keep the school rooms and grounds clean and tidy with community involvement of latrine construction, tree planting to provide shade and construction of wells to provide clean water | Nationwide | |
| School Feeding | Primary (7–14 years) and Pre-primary (5–6 years) | School workers are supposed to prepare food for the students. Parents and community should contribute food supplies | Arusha, Manyara, Shinyanga, Dodoma and Singida | |
| Radio or TV Programmes in Schools | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting boys and girls | Artists and media staff from the Ministry of Information, Youth, Culture and Sports (MIYCS), collaborating with the MOEVT and NGOs, are supposed to make occasional visits to schools to promote sport | Nationwide | |
| Deworming for Schistosomiasis using Praziquantel | 7–14 years (STD I–VII) targeting boys and girls | Delivered via a campaign basis once per year in regions where the Schistosomiasis prevalence is considered high enough to justify mass treatment. Trained teachers give the drug to the students under the supervision of health workers | Mainly in regions with high prevalence | |
| Deworming for Soil Transmitted Helminths (STH) using Albendazole/Mebendazole; for Lymphatic Filariasis and Oncocerciasis using Mectizan; Trachoma using Zithromax | Targets the whole community including primary and secondary school students aged 7–20 years | The deworming campaign is conducted annually as part of the Neglected Tropical Disease Control Programme (NTD), using a community-based approach. Health workers and/or trained community drug distributors visit distribution venues and/or make house-to-house visits to administer medications to all students and other community members within the target age range | Mainly in regions with high prevalence | |