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Background: School nurses play a vital role in ensuring the health and well-being of their students, but little is known about menstrual products and resources available in schools. This study assessed period product resources and needs in Missouri schools from the perspective of school nurses and analyzed differences by district enrollment characteristics. Methods: An electronic survey was emailed to public, charter, private, and parochial school nurses in Missouri who served fourth grade or older. From January through March 2022, 976 self-administered surveys were completed (40% response rate). Logistic regressions examined the associations between student needs and district characteristics. Results: Among the sample, 70.7% knew students who could not afford period products, and 68.0% knew students who had missed school because of their period. When controlling for district size, race/ethnicity, and urban/rural classification, as the percentage free- or reduced-lunch (FRL) eligibility increases in a school, awareness of students struggling to afford products increases (AOR = 1.008, 95% confidence interval 1.000, 1.015). Implications for School Health Policy, Practice, and Equity: School nurses need the resources and educational materials to support students to help reduce menstruation-related absences. Conclusions: Issues of period poverty cut across districts of differing enrollment characteristics, yet FRL percentage is an important predictor.

Menstrual hygiene management (MHM) among female students is a neglected public health issue in the U.S. This study documented period product insecurity, school absenteeism, and use of school resources to obtain period products among high-school students in St. Louis, MO. Female students completed an anonymous, self-administered survey in English (n = 119). Descriptive statistics were used to determine the prevalence of period product need, resources used to obtain period products, and period-related absenteeism. The mean age of participants was 15.78 ± 1.28. Nearly two-thirds (64.4% (95% CI 55.1%-73.0%)) reported period product insecurity. Two-thirds (66.9% (95% CI 57.7%-75.3%)) reported using at least one of the school's resources to obtain period products. One-third of the participants (33.6% (95% CI 25.0%-43.1%)) reported missing school due to a lack of period products. School nurses need to be cognizant of how MHM affects their students' attendance at school and what measures they can take to help reduce menstruation-related absenteeism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2008, the faculty of the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis designed a Master of Public Health program centered on transdisciplinary problem solving in public health. We have described the rationale for our approach, guiding principles and pedagogy for the program, and specific transdisciplinary competencies students acquire. We have explained how transdisciplinary content has been organized and delivered, how the program is being evaluated, and how we have demonstrated the feasibility of this approach for a Master of Public Health degree. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To assess the menstrual hygiene needs and related school absences among female students in an urban St. Louis, MO district., Methods: Students (n = 58) completed a self-administered survey during registration and orientation before the 2019-2020 school year., Results: Nearly half (48.3%) needed period products at least once last school year but did not have money to buy them. The majority (62.1%) accessed period products at school last year. Seventeen percent missed at least one day at school because of an inadequate supply of period products, including significantly more ninth graders than 10th-12th graders (33.3% vs. 6.1%, respectively, p < .01)., Conclusions: Students reported a substantial need for menstrual hygiene products but also frequent utilization of school resources to access products. Given that incoming ninth graders reported more absences related to an inadequate supply of products, the district may need to focus more attention on this issue in the junior high school and younger grades., (Copyright © 2020 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)