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School Nursing
Health Visitor – delivering the 0-5 Healthy Child Programme
The role of a Health Visitor
Where can we help?
How can we help?
CONI (Care Of Next Infant)
How you can access the service
How do we work?
The role of a Health Visitor
Health Visitors are registered Nurses or Midwives who have undertaken additional training to become Specialist Community Public Health Nurses. They work with families to give babies and pre-school children the best start in life, as we know that the first years of life are a foundation for future health and wellbeing.
We work closely with other members of the Primary Health Care Team (at the Princess Royal Medical Centre - PRMC) the Command Welfare Officer and British Forces Social Work Service. St Christopher’s School and Gibraltar Schools. We also refer to and liaise with the professionals at the local Children’s Health Centre (provided by the GHA – Gibraltar Health Authority) to make sure that all parents and children can access the most appropriate services for their health and wellbeing. Services offered by the GHA include Midwifery, Speech and Language Therapy, Physiotherapy, Orthoptists, Occupational Therapy, Dietitians, Consultant Paediatricians and Children’s Mental Health.
Where can we help?
Health Visitors see people at home, in the Medical Centre, in the Early Years setting (St Christopher’s school/Sunflowers Nursery), at Well Baby and Child Clinics (at HELM point) and remotely by telephone or VTC.
How can we help?
- Transition to parenthood
- Well Baby Clinic
- Babies and children's growth and development including speech, language and communication and readiness for school
- Supporting babies and children with additional needs
- Managing minor illnesses
- Advice on conditions, allergies and infections
- Breastfeeding, bottle feeding, weaning, nutrition and maintaining a healthy weight
- Postnatal depression and mum's and dad's mental and physical health
- Behaviour issues - e.g. sleeping, eating, potty training, tantrums
- Support with parenting
- Family planning
- Family health and relationships
- Teething and good dental health
- Health promotion
- Community health
- Children’s emotional wellbeing
CONI (Care Of Next Infant)
The CONI programme is designed for parents who are expecting or have given birth to a baby following the sudden unexpected death of a previous baby. It is normal for parents who have experienced a sudden and unexpected death of a baby to feel anxious when they have another baby.
The CONI programme is usually offered for 6 months after a baby has born but may be longer depending on the individual circumstances. Within the programme there are a range of tools which offer an individual and flexible programme of support to families during, what maybe a very stressful time.
Within each Military Overseas Command, where SSAFA provide Community Health Services, there will be a local CONI champion/coordinator, normally a midwife or a health visitor, but any member of the Community Health Team would be able to help you to access this service.
If you think you need the CONI programme, you can find out more information here - or speak to your Health Visitor.
How you can access the service
Health Visitors will contact all families, with children under 5 years, at the following times
After you arrive in Gibraltar and register at the Medical Centre, the Health Visitor will contact you.
- Shortly after arriving in Gibraltar
- Between 28-32 weeks of pregnancy
- With a new baby between 10-14 days
- When your baby is between 6-8 weeks old
- When your baby is 4 months old (as part of the 16 week immunisations)
- When your baby is 6 months old
- When your baby is between 10-12 months of age
- When your child is between 2 and 2 1/2 years of age (jointly with Sunflowers Nursery, if applicable)
- For Childhood Immunisations (including the nasal flu vaccination from 2 years old – via clinic held at HELM point, information on this is available via our Facebook page and from St Christopher’s school during flu season)
Please also see our contact telephone numbers on this page.
How do we work?
Health Visitors working with families in British Forces Gibraltar follow UK guidance and best practice which is detailed in the Healthy Child Programme and where possible will offer the service that you would normally expect to get in England.
We offer a Universal Service, which means that we offer our service to all families who have children under 5 years of age.
School Health - delivering the 5-19 Healthy Child Programme
Introduction
Health screening
Vaccinations
Medical records
Introduction
The Health Visitor also offers a School Nursing service. The service works in partnership with parents/carers, children, school staff and other professions to help achieve optimum health outcomes for children.
The School Health service offers health advice to teachers, children and parent/carers. Support is available for all health related issues including allergies, sleep problems, healthy eating, behaviour, bedwetting, growth and development, soiling and constipation.
The School Health service can support with the completion of individual school health care plans for children who suffer from chronic conditions such as asthma, diabetes or epilepsy if needed.
If necessary and with your consent, we can sign post you and your child to other agencies. The service works within SSAFA child protection and safeguarding procedures, and information will only be shared with others in order to protect the safety and welfare of a child.
Health screening
In Foundation Stage 2 (FS2) the School Nurse will carry out the health screening listed below. The screening is provided as an opt-out service (so your child will receive the screening services unless you instruct us not to do so).
Orthoptist: The GHA Orthoptist will assess your child’s vision in school. The Orthoptist is trained in diagnosing defects in eye movement and problems with how the eyes work together, called binocular vision. These can be caused by issues with the muscles around the eyes or defects in the nerves enabling the brain to communicate with the eyes. Please click here for more information.
Hearing Screening: available via referral from the School Nurse from the GHA if there are concerns. Unfortunately, we are unable to offer the screening for all children as happens in the UK. Occasionally, children need to return to the UK for the screening, depending on their age.
Height and Weight Measurement: We will complete height and weight measurements on children in Year 6 as part of the National Child Measurement Programme. Please click here for more information.
Parents are not usually present at screening, but we will inform you of the result.
Vaccinations
In line with the NHS vaccination schedule your child will have been offered vaccination at approximately 3 years and 4 months. If you think your child has missed these vaccinations, please contact us on the numbers listed below.
Children from FS2 up to and including Year 11 are offered the nasal flu spray each year between October and December. However, the GHA have now started to offer this in Gibraltar schools, so it may be easier for your child to be vaccinated in school.
In Year 8 your child will be offered the HPV (Human Papillomavirus Vaccine). The HPV vaccine helps protect against cancers including cervical cancer, some mouth and throat cancers and some cancers of the anal and genital areas.
In Year 9 your child will be offered the Men ACWY (Meningitis) and the 3-in-1 teenage booster (tetanus, diphtheria and polio).
The GHA send letters home about these immunisations but it will not be added to your child’s NHS record. If you don’t complete the GHA consent form, your child won’t be vaccinated in school. We encourage you to have your child’s immunisations done at the PRMC so that it can be added to your child’s NHS record. We will contact you to arrange a suitable time near the start of the school year. If you have moved to Gibraltar at a different time of year and your child has missed their immunisation, we can still vaccinate them at any time.
For further information from the NHS please click here.
For further information from the UK Government please click here.
Medical records
Your child's electronic medical record will be updated following any contact with the Health service. The records are not shared with the school and are kept securely in the Medical Centre.