This annual report - Taranaki District Health Board

The B4 School CheckThe B4 School Check is the eighth core contact in the Well Child Tamariki Ora Scheduleand has been offered to the families of four year old children nationally since September2008. Registered nurses undertake the checks in a variety of settings includingpreschools, Kōhanga Reo, doctor’s clinics and other community venues, with childrenmissing out on their check usually being assessed at school at five years of age [91].The aim of the B4 School Check is to identify any health, behavioural, developmental orsocial concerns which may affect a child’s ability to do well at school (e.g. hearingproblems, communication difficulties) and to make timely referrals that ensure that childrenarrive at school ready to participate. The check itself usually takes 45–60 minutes andincludes advice and support for parents about child health and development, a child healthquestionnaire, hearing, vision and oral health screens, a questionnaire to identifydevelopmental and behavioural problems, height and weight measurements, and referralsto specialist services if problems are identified that need further investigation [91].The following section reviews the proportion of children who received their B4 SchoolChecks during the years ending June 2011 and June 2012.Data Sources and MethodsIndicator1. Proportion of all eligible children receiving B4 School Checks2. Proportion of children from the most deprived areas receiving B4 School ChecksNumerator: Number of children receiving B4 School ChecksDenominator: Number of children eligible for B4 School ChecksEstimated for the total population, as well as those living in the most deprived (NZDep deciles 9–10) areasNotes on InterpretationThe data in this section were sourced from the Ministry of Health’s B4 School Check websitehttp://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/life-stages/child-health/b4-school-check/b4-school-check-informationhealth-sectorMidland Region DistributionIn the Waikato in the year ending June 2012, 80.9% of all eligible children received theirB4 School Check, as compared to 83.0% in the Bay of Plenty, 89.1% in Lakes DHB,77.8% in Tairawhiti and 84.2% in Taranaki. In all Midland DHBs except Lakes DHB,coverage was higher for children from the most deprived (NZDep deciles 9–10) areas(compared to all eligible children), with rates being 94.7% in the Waikato, 88.2% in the Bayof Plenty, 88.5% in Lakes DHB, 87.6% in Tairawhiti and 94.1% in Taranaki (Table 24,Figure 84).Well Child/Tamariki Ora Services - 179