Student Wellness in Oak Ridge Schools
Oak Ridge Schools Nursing Staff in partnership with Coordinated School Health will provide annual vision, height/weight & blood pressure screenings for students in K, 2, 4, 6, 8 and High School Lifetime Wellness & Physical Education classes. Health screenings are recommended by the State of Tennessee to inform parents/guardians of any possible changes in their child’s health. Please note that all screenings and information gathered is private and confidential!
In addition, the student will be screened for Body Mass Index (BMI), which is calculated by recording their height and weight. Your child will not receive his/ her BMI results. These results will be available via Skyward.
Viewing your Child’s Health Screening Results
After logging into Skyward and once results are available, you will notice that an online form is available for you to fill out on your Skyward Home screen. Once this form is up follow these instructions to view your child’s results:
- Click the tab labeled “Portfolio” on the left-hand side of your screen. Then click the tab labeled “Health-Physical”. You should now see a screen that shows your child’s height, weight, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure, as well as Vision Overall Pass/Fail followed by a notes section. The NOTES section will tell whether your child did not fall within normal limits on the BMI/Blood pressure screenings. If you do not see any notes, then your child falls within normal limits on the BMI/Blood Pressure screenings.
- If the notes section indicated your child did not fall within normal limits on the BMI and/or blood pressure screening, you will need to complete the response form BMI screening is based on the student’s height, weight, age and sex. A high/low BMI and/or Blood pressure can lead to weight related diseases or other health issues. If there are no notes written, then this means your child falls within the normal ranges and no follow-up is needed at this time.
- Your child’s vision screening results can be found listed under the section “Vision Overall Pass/Fail”. You will see either “P” for pass or “F” for If your child falls outside of normal ranges (F), your school nurse will be reaching out to you.
Every year Coordinated School Health compiles this data and reports it to the state. NO Identifying student information (Name, Date of Birth, Student ID Numbers) are shared with the state. We use this data locally to continue to implement programs to decrease the district-wide BMI percentage and to promote healthy lifestyle choices for improved overall student health.
If you do NOT want your child to participate in the BMI screening, please submit your request in writing to your school nurse at the beginning of reach year.
For More information, on the importance and success of health screenings in the state of Tennessee, please view this short video:
CDC Health Schools: Tennessee School Health Successes
Parent Information on Student Health Issues
Check out the resources below to find out information on obesity, vaping, opioids and other trending health concerns.
Vaping Use Among Youth
Vaping has become one of the most popular forms of substance use among young people, despite it being illegal to sell to anyone under the age of 21 and growing evidence of its health risks and harms.
According to the CDC’s National Youth Tobacco Survey, 1 in 5 high school students reported vaping in the past month. With ample advertising geared toward teens and young adults, the availability of brightly colored vape pens and thousands of flavors to choose from, the expectation is that this trend will continue.
To help counter-balance the manipulative and deceptive messages and misinformation being directed at teens, parents should be prepared to answer the big questions about vaping.
What does this epidemic look like in Tennessee?
What Parent’s Need to Know
You can find this tip sheet at: E-Cigarette Parent Tip Sheet
Partnership to End Addiction Resources
https://drugfree.org/article/what-parents-need-to-know-about-vaping/
TN Department of Health Resources for Parents and Youth
Click Here to Visit the TN Dept of Health Resources
Obesity and it’s Impact on Health and Academics
Health Risks
For children and teens, a high Body Mass Index can lead to weight-related diseases. In 2017, Tennessee was ranked 5th in the nation for most obese 10-17 year olds and unfortunately, the consequences last far beyond their teen years. Overweight and obese children are subject to several short- and long-term health effects such as chronic diseases (asthma, sleep apnea, and bone and joint issues), emotional health effects from being bullied and/or isolated by their peers, and long-term health issues later in life (adult obesity and heart disease). Obese children have twice the risk of cardiovascular disease and four times the risk of type-2 diabetes over their lifetime. Additionally, obese children are at a higher risk for cancer and have a shorter overall life expectancy.
Obesity and Academics
According to the *CDC, healthy students are better leaners! Poor nutrition, lack of physical activity and an overall unhealthy lifestyle can lead to poor academic achievement in children. Studies have shown that healthy children get better grades, attend school more often and behave better in class.
Combating Obesity at Home
The state of Tennessee Department of Health Website offers many resources on how to combat obesity in school and at home:
Eat Healthy
Stay Active-
Children and adolescents ages 6 through 17 years should do 60 minutes (1 hour) or more of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily.
Want help staying active at home? Try these Physical Activity Calendars! Turn in your completed Physical Activity Calendars to Marcia Wade at mkwade@ortn.edu for a small prize!