Adolescent school absenteeism and service use in a population-based study

Area of Science:

• Adolescent Health
• Public Health
• Healthcare Utilization

Background:

• School absenteeism is linked to negative health outcomes, risky behaviors, and dropout.
• Understanding service use among absent adolescents is crucial for intervention.
• This study compares service use in Norwegian adolescents with varying absence rates.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate healthcare and service utilization among Norwegian adolescents with moderate and high school absenteeism.
• To compare service use patterns between absent and non-absent student populations.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the population-based youth@hordaland-survey (2012).
• Included 8988 adolescents aged 16-18 from Hordaland County, Norway.
• Service use data derived from self-reports; absence data from administrative records.

Main Results:

• 10.1% of adolescents had high absence (≥15% absence).
• High absence correlated with increased contact with mental health services (OR 3.96), adolescent health clinics (OR 2.11), and general practitioners (OR 1.94).
• A gradient of service use was observed with increasing absence, yet 40% of highly absent students had no service contact.

Conclusions:

• Adolescents with high absenteeism demonstrate higher service utilization.
• A significant portion of at-risk adolescents remain without necessary healthcare or service contact.
• Systematic collaboration between schools and health personnel could effectively address school absenteeism.