Associations between study questionnaire-assessed need and school doctor-evaluated benefit of routine health checks: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: In Finland, school doctors examine all children at predetermined ages in addition to annual health checks by school nurses. This study explored the association of study questionnaire-assessed need for and school doctor-evaluated benefit of routine health checks conducted by doctors. METHODS: Between August 2017 and August 2018, we recruited a random sample of 1341 children in grades 1 and 5 (aged seven and eleven years, respectively) from 21 elementary schools in four Finnish municipalities. Children mainly studying in special education groups or whose parents needed an interpreter were excluded. School nurses performed their health check as usual. Parents, nurses, and teachers then completed study questionnaires that assessed the concerns of parents, school nurses, and teachers regarding each child's physical, mental and social health. Doctors, blinded to the responses, routinely examined all the children. The primary outcome measures were (1) the need for a health check based on the study questionnaires and (2) the benefit/harm of the appointment as estimated by the doctors according to predetermined criteria, and (3) the patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) of benefit/harm of the appointment as estimated by the parents and children. We compared the need for a health check with the doctor-evaluated benefit using multilevel logistic regression. RESULTS: The participation rate was 75.5 %. According to all questionnaires, 20-25 % of the 1013 children had no need for a health check. The doctors regarded 410 (40.6 %) and the parents 812 (83.4 %) of the appointments as being beneficial. Respondents rarely reported harm. The children who were classified as needing a health check more often benefitted from the health check (assessed by the doctor) than children with no need for one (OR 3.53; 95 % CI 2.41-5.17). CONCLUSIONS: The need for a health check is an important predictor of school-doctor evaluated benefit of the health check. This approach could allow school doctors to allocate time for the children who need them most. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, Identifier NCT03178331, registration June 6th 2017.

Stability of parent-reported food allergy in six and 7-year-old children: the first 5 years of the Finnish allergy programme.

AIM: The Finnish national allergy programme was introduced in 2008 to decrease the burden of allergy in the population. This study, carried out in 2013, evaluated the prevalence of parent-reported food allergies, treated with an avoidance diet until early school age, and discussed the rates in relation to those found in an identical study in 2009. METHODS: School health nurses used a structured questionnaire to interview the parents of 1653 children aged of six or seven in the first year of elementary school. The criterion for a parent-reported food allergy was that the parents considered it necessary for their child to follow an avoidance diet at school. RESULTS: In 2013, 6.1% of the children were allergic to at least one food and 2.5% of the children were allergic to basic foods, such as cows' milk, eggs and wheat, compared with 2.7% in 2009. A significant decrease was seen in allergies to nuts, fruits and vegetables. CONCLUSION: Parent-reported allergies to basic foods, such as cow's milk, eggs and wheat, remained rather stable in first graders of elementary schools during the first 5 years of the Finnish national allergy programme, but allergies to nuts, fruits and vegetables decreased.

[Initiation and monitoring of contraception]. / Raskauden ehkäisyn aloitus ja seuranta.

The majority of those requiring contraception may safely use any available contraceptive method. Each method has, however, its particular contraindications, which should be screened by applying careful anamnesis and focused status, when contraception is being initiated. Gynecologic examination is not a prerequisite for the initiation of hormonal contraception, but measurement and monitoring of blood pressure is important. Testing for sexually transmitted diseases is readily worthwhile. Follow-up visits provide a chance for comprehensive support for a woman or a young person concerning sexual health.

Provision of contraception: a survey among primary care physicians in Finland.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate self-reported practices of contraceptive provision among primary care physicians. DESIGN: A cross-sectional questionnaire study. SETTING: All community health centers (n = 63) in an university hospital area in Western Finland. SAMPLE AND METHODS: A total of 122 health center physicians involved in contraceptive counseling (CC) were invited to participate in self-administered survey. Data were obtained on initiation of contraceptive methods and the limits and contraindications applied when prescribing combined hormonal contraception (CHC), and they were assessed against Finnish and WHO guidelines. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Distribution of initiated contraceptive methods and of examinations and tests included, application of limits and contraindications in relation to age, smoking, body mass index or weight, blood pressure (BP) and migraine with aura when prescribing CHC (combined oral contraceptives (COCs), vaginal ring and contraceptive patch). RESULTS: Responded physicians (n = 83.68%) said they most frequently prescribed the COC pill. Progestin-only pills, levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system and copper-releasing intrauterine device were also provided regularly. Most of the respondents routinely took numerous examinations and tests when initiating contraception, including also unnecessary ones. There were gaps in their knowledge about the limits and contraindications for CHC. For example, 41% of the respondents did not recognize migraine with aura as a contraindication and only 19% reported applying the recommended BP limit of 140/90 mmHg. CONCLUSIONS: The range of contraceptives available and examinations and tests offered were comprehensive. However, the inadequate procedures regarding assessment of contraindications for CHC suggests that updating CC practices is challenging in primary care.

Quality of the contraceptive service structure: a pilot study in Finnish health centre organisations.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the quality of the contraceptive service structure in health centre organisations (HCOs) in western Finland and to establish whether the characteristics of the HCOs are associated with the quality measured. METHODS: Survey data were collected from all HCOs in a university hospital area in western Finland (N = 63). Quality was evaluated using a score of ten indicators. Associations between the score and the characteristics of the HCOs were studied using rank correlation analysis and a multivariate ordered logit model. RESULTS: Among 51 HCOs yielding complete data for the evaluation, the quality score ranged from 3 to 10, the mean being 5.8. From 25 variables studied, 'a chief nursing officer or leading nurse engaged in the HCO' (p = 0.001) and 'an appointed person responsible for management of health promotion' (p = 0.006) were found to be associated with a good score in the rank correlation analysis, and they also remained significant in multivariate analysis (Odds Ratio [OR] = 11.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.3-56.5 and OR = 5.9, 95% CI 1.6-21.5, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: In the majority of the HCOs involved, the quality of service structure was rated average, but there was much variation between the HCOs. The results of the multivariate analysis emphasise the importance of good management of services.

Initiation of postpartum contraception: a survey among health centre physicians and nurses in Finland.

OBJECTIVE: To examine self-reported professional practices of postpartum contraceptive counselling at Finnish community health centres. DESIGN: A survey study with self-administered online questionnaires. SETTING: All local municipalities (n = 107) in the Expert Responsibility Area of Tampere University Hospital in Western Finland in 2005. SUBJECTS: A total of 69 (64% of 107) health centre physicians and 80 (75%) nurses performing postpartum check-ups. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Contraceptive method most often initiated or recommended to breastfeeding women at postpartum visit; timing of postpartum initiation of hormonal and intrauterine contraceptive methods in relation to breastfeeding and resumption of menses. RESULTS: The most common contraceptive method initiated or recommended to breastfeeding women by both physicians (41%) and nurses (45%) was the condom, followed by progestin-only pills and intrauterine contraception. Few professionals recommended breastfeeding (lactational amenorrhea) as the only contraceptive method. Only eight (12%) physicians inserted a copper-releasing intrauterine device and five (7%) a levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system typically at the postpartum visit; the majority delayed the insertions until the resumption of menses. Fifty-three (77%) physicians initiated combined oral contraceptives mostly when breastfeeding was terminated and menses had returned. Over half of the municipalities involved in the study did not provide any medical contraceptives free of charge postpartum. CONCLUSION: Professionals' reports indicate that initiation of effective contraceptive methods is delayed after childbirth. In order to promote better postpartum contraception practices, updated evidence-based guidelines are needed.

Promotion of adolescent sexual health in primary care: survey in Finnish health centres.

OBJECTIVES: To describe adolescent sexual health services in primary care in Finland, focusing on services for contraceptive counselling, sexually transmitted infections and abortion. METHODS: Service provision, accessibility and practices were surveyed in all 63 health centre organizations (HCOs) in a hospital district in Western Finland via separate e-mailed questionnaires to chief physicians (n = 49, response rate 78%), directors of nursing (58, 92%), doctors (49, 78%) and nurses (62, 98%). RESULTS: Dedicated youth clinics existed in only three HCOs. In others, services were provided in family planning, maternity or outpatient clinics. The average wait for contraceptive consultation was 4.8 days to a nurse and 12.5 days to a doctor. In 15 HCOs doctors stipulated a minimum age for combined hormonal contraception. Free supply of contraceptives was often limited to initiation. On-site instructions for chlamydia screening existed in 11 HCOs. Nurses could test for chlamydia without doctor's involvement in 46 HCOs. School nurses participated actively in sexuality education in secondary schools. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescent sexual health services were generally adequately available in the HCOs studied. However, services tailored for adolescents were rare. Some medical barriers to access to contraception were found. To improve the system, further involvement of nurses in service provision is recommended.