Breadcrumb
School Staff
We offer various services to schools to promote health and wellness.
Health Promoting Schools
The Health Promoting School (HPS) Coordinator Initiative provides partial funding to 16 HPS Coordinator positions at the School District level. Through this initiative, we aim to promote and support ‘Health Promoting Schools’ settings within School Districts as defined by the widely recognized pillars of Comprehensive School Health.
To sign up for the Health Promoting Schools Newsletter contact HealthySchools@interiorhealth.ca.
2024
To assist with resources for classroom teaching on health topics, the following Healthy Schools Teaching Toolkits are available below or by contacting your school health nurse
Health promotion resources
A wide variety of health promotion resources can be found below.
- Healthy Schools Assessment Tool - GOT HEALTH
- Guidelines for managing head lice at school
- Kelty Mental Health- School Professionals
- Teaching Children about Needle Safety
- Embody – Eating Disorder Prevention and Awareness
- Condom Supply Order Form for Schools
- Condom Distribution Best Practices
- Condom Poster
- Schools and Menstrual Supplies
- BC Health Files Back to School
- Healthy Schools BC
- School Physical Activity/Physical Literacy
- The Joint Consortium for School Health
School nurses
School nurses provide support to schools by preventing diseases and injuries, and helping to support those with health concerns. Public health nurses (PHNs) work in partnership with school staff, students, parents and the community to promote health and prevent disease and injury for school-aged children and youth.
- SD 5 South East Kootenay
- SD 6 Rocky Mountain
- SD 8 Kootenay Lake
- SD 10 Arrow Lakes
- SD 19 Revelstoke
- SD 20 Kootenay Columbia
- SD 22 Vernon
- SD 23 Central Okanagan
- SD 27 Cariboo Chilcotin
- SD 51 Boundary
- SD 53 Okanagan Similkameen
- SD 58 Nicola Similkameen
- SD 67 Okanagan Skaha
- SD 73 Kamloops Thompson
- SD 74 Gold Trail
- SD 83 North Okanagan Shuswap
- SD 93 Conseil Scolaire Francophone
Nursing Support Services (NSS) helps parents and caregivers of children with special health care needs to lead active, healthy lives in their communities. NSS Coordinators facilitate safe, consistent care and appropriate health support in a variety of locations including homes, schools and childcare settings.
View Nursing Support Nurses contact information
Services include, but aren’t limited to:
- Providing information and consultation about health issues relating to the special need
- Planning of community care
- Training of alternate caregivers
- At Home Program assessment which provides medical and respite benefits to those families who qualify
This program is available to children and youth (birth to 19 years) living in B.C. who require specialized nursing services. Anyone can make a referral to NSS. Contact the Nursing Support Services Coordinator through your local health centre. More information is available from the BC Children’s Hospital Nursing Support Services Program.
School food and healthy eating
Public health dietitians are available to work with school district staff such as school food coordinators and Health Promoting School Coordinators to:
- Provide resources for integrating food literacy into the curriculum
- Support heathy school food environments
- Develop school nutrition policies and follow provincial guidelines as they apply to school food
For resources to support curriculum and for information on healthy eating at school, see Teaching About Food and Nutrition.
Harm reduction
Our Youth Harm Reduction toolkit was designed to assist Interior Health staff, community partners, schools and others who work with youth to find credible harm reduction information, resources and tools to support them in the important work they do.
View information from the toolkit for schools
View all sections of the toolkit
PreVenture
PreVenture is a mental health promotion and substance use prevention program aimed at students in grades 7 or 8. The program is strengths based, personality focused, and evidence informed. PreVenture has demonstrated positive outcomes in mental wellness, self management and decision-making, as well as reductions in bullying and substance use behaviours.
Interior Health offers support to school districts interested in delivering the PreVenture program in two or more of their schools, and is also partnering with interested Independent and First Nations schools. If you would like more information about PreVenture and how to become involved, please email healthyschools@interiorhealth.ca. To learn more about the developers of the program and read published research, visit PreVenture.
Tobacco, cannabis & vaping in schools
Commercial tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death and illness in Canada, and 90 per cent of smokers today started before they were age 18. Increases in youth vaping have also become a significant concern in more recent years due to the appeal of available flavours and the ease with which vape devices can be concealed.
Cannabis is another substance commonly used among youth because they feel it benefits them. Some of the most common reasons why youth might use cannabis are to feel good, relax, or reduce feelings of anxiety and depression. However, youth under age 25 are at greater risk of developing mental health problems from regular cannabis use because their brains are still developing.
Legislation is a key tool in reducing tobacco, cannabis and vapour product use and protecting youth from accessing tobacco, cannabis and vapour products. All public and private kindergarten to Grade 12 schools in B.C. are tobacco, cannabis and vape-free under the Tobacco and Vapour Products Control Act and Regulation, and the Cannabis Control and Licensing Act. This ban extends to all school property 24 hours a day, seven days a week, regardless of whether or not school is in session. The ban also includes vehicles, parking lots, sports fields, driveways, courtyards and private vehicles parked on school property.
Our Toolkit – Vaping School Properties provides resources to school district staff and others who are working to address the use of vapour products among youth.
School compliance information is available to advise both public and private schools of their responsibilities for showing reasonable care and diligence with the Tobacco and Vapour Products Control Act.
The following resources are also available:
- Tobacco & Vaping Resources for Schools
- Vaping and Youth Factsheet
- Vapour Products In and On School Property
- About Vaping (Health Canada)
- Vaping and Lung Health (British Columbia Lung Association)
- Respecting Tobacco (First Nations Health Authority)
- Take a Breath Contest: Teen Voices on Tobacco, Cannabis & Vaping
- Quitting Tobacco or Vaping
- Cannabis Information for Youth
- Is cannabis safe to use? Facts for youth aged 13-17 years (Health Canada)
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