Monday, February 11, 2019 ~ WEST SHORE.
~ by Mary P Brooke, B.Sc. | West Shore Voice News
A 10-minute presentation was given by Sooke School District 62 (SD62) Chair Ravi Parmar and SD62 Superintendent Scott Stinson at the January 31 Island Health board meeting held at the Juan de Fuca Fieldhouse in Colwood.
Also attending were SD62 trustees Wendy Hobbs, Dianna Seaton, and Margot Swinburnson, and Healthy Schools lead Cindy Andrew.
Parmar and Stinson emphasized the geographical scope of SD62, from Port Renfrew through Sooke to Metchosin and East Sooke, as well as the core west shore areas of Langford and Colwood as well Highlands and parts of View Royal. Stinson says SD62 is “making health and well-being a priority”.
Stinson said that “youth tend to be fairly poorly connected to primary care” and that the in-school wellness centre “has increased the opportunity for students for wellness” including with any “emerging mental health needs”.
At Royal Bay Secondary in Colwood and Edward Milne Community School in Sooke the health centres are “fledgling and continuing to develop”.
Stinson said that “SD62 does offer free and low cost space for wellness centres in three of our high schools”, also working with NGOs and first nations.
In-school attention to mental health needs contributes to better graduation rates and beyond that a person’s contribution to society, said Stinson. He identified student socioeconomic vulnerabilities such as unstable housing, food insecurity, unemployment and substance use as contributing to the challenge of access to primary health care. In-school health resources help mitigate that.
Stinson talked about health literacy and how SD62 aims to guide students in learning to access resources, by developing the agency and capacity of students to act on resources.
Regarding social return on investment relative to these health resources — “a collaborative intersection of funding for health and funding for education” — Stinson said that for every dollar invested in staff there is a return of $8.31 across the community seen after graduation in healthier habits and behaviours, improved health and wellness, and improved educational outcomes.
“Consistency with what’s happening in health care and education and informed consumers is a large part of our work,” said Superintendent Stinson. He said that accessing mental health and primary health life skills for students increases SD62’s primary objectives of a good graduation rate of individuals who are “well informed and well looked after”.
The SD62 wellness centres can be sustainable and scalable. Stinson said the school district looks to “how Island Health can work with Education to provide the services that are well utilized within the schools”.
SD62 is one of the largest employers on the south island with 1,600 staff, said Parmar. A budget of $130 million sees the operation of 27 schools for the delivery of public education to over 11,000 students. The 2018-2021 SD62 strategic plan aims for outcomes in Learning (including social-emotional), Engagement (a healthy environment that promotes wellness), and Growth (including facility expansion).
“It was an honour to be given the opportunity to present to the Board,” said Parmar afterward. “They were extremely welcoming and supportive of the work both our organizations are doing to support students in both Sooke and the Westshore. I look forward to welcoming them to the Belmont Wellness Centre in the future.”
This article was first published on page 2 in the February 1, 2019 print-PDF weekend digest edition of West Shore Voice News
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