Adherence to components of Health Promoting Schools in schools of Bengaluru, India

Schools provide a crucial platform for health promotion as the school years are a vital stage in one's life, where lifelong general and oral health-related behaviours are developed and established. The components of Health Promoting Schools (HPSs) suggested by World Health Organization provide guidance for facilitating health promotion within this setting. This study aimed to assess the adherence to the components of HPSs amongst schools in Bengaluru, India utilizing a comprehensive tool developed for the purpose. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among randomly selected 61 schools. Data were collected through structured interviews with the head of the schools, direct observation of school premises and verification of records. The significant findings of the study were that 80.3% of the schools had proper ventilation and separate washrooms for boys and girls, 83.6 and 88.5% of the schools had natural light and adequate water supply correspondingly. Only 39.3% of the schools had washrooms that were cleaned daily, and 55.7% of the schools were in proximity to business that sold tobacco products. Oral health education was not integrated into the curriculum in 39.3% of the schools, and 29.5% of the schools had no playgrounds. The study tool appeared to be sensitive in identifying the finer components of HPSs, indicating the lack of strict adherence to the components of HPSs in Bengaluru. This information can be utilized to design appropriate interventions at micro, meso and macro level to strengthen the capacity of schools for the attainment of health promotion.