Module Based Health Education On Stress & Depression- Effectiveness And Feasibility Study Among Schools In Dakshina Kannada: A Pilot Study

Introduction: Today, 1.2 billion adolescents stand at the crossroads between childhood and the adult world. India is home to 243 million of them. The health status of an adolescent determines health status in his adulthood as many serious diseases in adulthood have their roots in adolescence.Objectives: To assess baseline as well as post interventional knowledge of students on stress and depression using a structured health educational module and to assess its utility and acceptability.Methodology: A school-based Interventional study was undertaken in two high schools using a purposive sampling method. Intervention in the form of health education was imparted using a structured module. FGDs in both the schools for teachers were also conducted.Results: A total of 108 adolescent students were enrolled in the study. Mean baseline knowledge scores for stress and depression for the students were found to be 6.35, which, post-test increased to 11 and this was found to be statistically significant. Further, the mean score difference (MSD) among girls was found to be higher. Private schools had a lower increase in MSD when compared to public schools. Teachers agreed to the point that the introduction of an intervention module will have an impact on students in the aspect of stress and depression.Conclusion: The induction of the proposed module created awareness of stress and depression among adolescent students. Hence, it is recommended to introduce this module on a large scale in the school curriculum, which is expected to help our students overcome some of their major mental health problems.