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SECTION 5: BEING HEALTHY
There are important promises in the UNCRC about your health. The UNCRC says:
- You should be as healthy as possible. Adults should take good care of you.
- If you have a disability you should get the care and support you need so that you can live a full and independent life and grow up the same way as other children.
- If you are ill you should get the medical care you need.
- Your family should have enough money to make sure you and other children in your family are healthy and looked after properly. The Government should help when necessary.
All health services in Scotland are free for children and young people. There are 14 NHS Boards in Scotland which organise how health services work in your local area. WAITING TIMES for appointments or treatment at hospitals are now shorter for everyone. The Government produced an ACTION FRAMEWORK that detailed what it is trying to do about CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE'S HEALTH.
Every school should be a HEALTH PROMOTING SCHOOL. This means your school should be doing everything it can in lessons, after school, and in the food and drink available, to help create a healthy life for all pupils. A project called Hungry for Success worked to improve food, drink and canteens in schools.
The Government was concerned about the DIET of many young people; some are OVERWEIGHT or OBESE. The Government launched campaigns and projects to get pupils involved in sports and exercise in schools called Active Schools.
The Government tried to increase BREASTFEEDING as it's good for a baby's health. Only 1 in 3 babies in Scotland are still being breastfed at 8 weeks old.
A lot of attention has been given to THE MENTAL HEALTH OF YOUNG PEOPLE. Plans include having a professional person who is an expert in mental health linked to every school and special training for professionals who support young people who are most vulnerable; including those who are looked after. The Government also said it will do more to place young people who are admitted to hospital in accommodation for them and not in adult places.
The Government was so concerned about SUICIDE AND SELF HARM that they set up a project called Choose Life. This was to make support and counselling services more available in schools and in the community. The Government set up the ' see me' campaign to help get rid of the stigma and discrimination that can be felt when someone has a mental health problem. There's more at
www.seemescotland.org.uk
The Government recognised that CONFIDENTIALITY is important when young people want information or help about SEXUAL HEALTH AND RELATION-SHIPS. Professionals have been told they need to be better at understanding and explaining how confidentiality works.
SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTIONS are increasing amongst young people. The Government is concerned about the numbers of teenagers who get pregnant. A Government plan called Respect and Responsibility was introduced. It says we need to learn about respect for ourselves and others, that sex and relationship education in schools should be better and that teenagers should be able to get free contraception and condoms if they want them.
HIV AND AIDS affect some children and young people, perhaps because they are living with HIV/ AIDS themselves or because someone in their family does. In Scotland people living with HIV/ AIDS can get anti-retroviral drugs to help them manage HIV/ AIDS and stay as well as they can.
DRUG AND ALCOHOL USE is a big concern in Scotland. Nearly 100,000 children and young people live in a family where a parent has alcohol problems. The Government committed to tackle binge drinking and encourages young people, when they are older, to drink sensibly. Cannabis is the other drug most used by young people but it is worth remembering that the vast majority of young people do not use drugs. School education about drugs and alcohol is getting better and Know the Score was a project launched to get information to everyone. More at www.knowthescore.info
SMOKING is a problem in Scotland. About 12% of 15 year old boys smoke; and 18% of 15 year old girls. The numbers are coming down slowly. A Breath of Fresh Air for Scotland was the Government's plan to make a difference. In 2006 Scotland became the first part of the UK to BAN SMOKING IN ENCLOSED PUBLIC PLACES.
The Government made TACKLING CHILD POVERTY a priority and wanted to do more for FAMILIES OR YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE HOMELESS. It introduced Closing the Opportunity Gap and gave a commitment to making sure all 16 to 18 year olds have a place in education, employment or training. New laws about homelessness have made the situation better for families and children, but there is still a lot to do.
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