The healthcare needs of a cohort of kindergarten children in a rural New South Wales community: a medical record review

Objective To quantitatively describe the healthcare needs of a cohort of kindergarten children in a low-socioeconomic rural community to inform school entry health check programs and school-based healthcare services. Study type Medical record review. Methods Data were extracted from the community health electronic medical records of children who started primary school in 2019 at one of the five study schools and who received at least one occasion of service from a nurse-led School-Based Primary Health Care Service for a health or developmental concern. Data extracted included demographics, presenting concerns, challenges to accessing care, service activities, and referrals. Results Of the 140 children enrolled in kindergarten in the sample schools, 84 (60%) had an occasion of service for a health or developmental concern. Of these 84 children, speech and language concerns (43%) were most frequently observed, followed by metabolic/nutrition (26%), behaviour (16%), and vision (16%) concerns. Evidence of challenges to accessing care was identified in 40% of cases. Sixty percent of identified children were referred to another provider. Conclusion The high prevalence of health and developmental concerns and challenges to accessing care found in this study supports the need for school entry health check models that provide ongoing support to families.