Research Note
The General Understanding and Perceptions of the Practical Use of School Health Records: A Questionnaire Survey of Parents from Seven Local Municipalities in Japan
2020 Volume 16 Pages 33-42
Details
2020 Volume 16 Pages 33-42
Background: School health check-ups are annually performed in Japan. However, the practical use of the data has not sufficiently progressed.
Objective: We performed a questionnaire survey to elucidate the general understanding and perceptions of the practical use of school health records in Japanese local municipalities after providing the summary report of the school health check-up records to parents.
Methods: Parents from 7 local municipalities with 49 junior-high schools (N = 4,081) were invited to answer the survey, which comprised the following contents: 1) sociodemographic characteristics, 2) attention toward children’s health and parents’ own health, and 3) practical use of school and integrated health records.
Results: Most parents answered the survey (N = 2,747, 67.3%). Results revealed that 84.7% of the parents had family conversations about the report, 63.1% believed the report improved attention toward child health, 58.5% who did not have a health-checkup annually increased their attention toward their own health, and over 80% agreed to use health records for health promotion and disease prevention.
Conclusion: The summary report can improve attention toward children’s and parents’ health, and the practical use of health records can be approved. Additional studies focusing on parents’ negative opinions toward this process should be elucidated.
