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Lifelong Learning Programme Comenius Project. This publication is a product of the project ‘RESCUR - Developing a Resilience Curriculum for Primary Schools in Europe’ www.rescur.eu, funded by the EU Commission Lifelong Learning Programme, RESCUR Surfing The Waves (Revised) is a resilience programme for early years and primary schools developed by six European universities, published in 10 languages and implemented in schools across Europe and other countries such as Australia, Russia and Turkey. The programme seeks to empower children at risk of early school leaving, absenteeism, disengagement, bullying, social exclusion and marginalisation through a universal intervention implemented within an inclusive context. Amongst its special features, it includes story telling based on two specially designed characters, mindfulness activities, ready-made activities and resources for the classroom teacher, interactive multisensory activities, take home activities, and teacher and self-assessment checklists for each theme. The 2022 revised edition of the programme includes a Revised Teachers Guide, two new story books with pictures, a Revised Parents Guide, and three revised manuals of activities and resources for Early Years, Early Primary Years and Late Primary Years respectively., peer-reviewed

Positive mental health is central to adolescent well-being. The present study examines the prevalence of loneliness and positive mental health indicators (mental well-being and self-esteem) in four Nordic countries and associations between loneliness, mental well-being, and high self-esteem. This study is based on data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study which was conducted in 2018 in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden. Participants were 5883 15-year-old boys and girls. To examine the associations between loneliness, mental well-being, and self-esteem, structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied. In the comparison of Nordic countries, the prevalence of loneliness was highest among Finnish and Icelandic adolescents. High mental well-being and high self-esteem were most prevalent in Denmark and Sweden. In general, boys scored higher on positive mental health indicators and girls on loneliness. Loneliness was also a strong indicator of low mental well-being and low self-esteem in all Nordic countries. Loneliness is not only associated with mental health problems such as anxiety and depression, but it is also a risk factor for adolescents’ positive mental health. Positive mental health is important for healthy maturation and there is a need to develop initiatives to reduce adolescent loneliness and so support positive development. peerReviewed

Background: Palestine, like other low-income countries, is confronting an increasing epidemic of non-communicable disease (NCD) and trend of war injury. The management of health problems often presents a critical challenge to the Palestinian health system (PHS). Understanding the perceptions of healthcare providers is essential in exploring the gaps in the health system to develop an effective healthcare intervention. Unfortunately, health research on management of NCD and war injury has largely been neglected and received little attention. Therefore, the study aimed to explore the perspectives of healthcare providers regarding NCD and war injury management in the PHS in the Gaza Strip. Methods: A qualitative study approach was used, based on four focus group discussions (FGDs) involving a purposive sampling strategy of 30 healthcare providers from three main public hospitals in Gaza Strip. A semi-structured topic guide was used, and the focus group interviews data were analyzed using manifest content analysis. The study was approved by the Palestinian Health Research Council (PHRC) for ethics approval. Results: From the healthcare providers perspective, four main themes and several subthemes have emerged from the descriptive manifest content analysis: functioning of healthcare system; system-related challenges; patients-related challenges; strategies and actions to navigating the challenges and improving care. Informants frequently discussed that despite some positive aspects in the system, fundamental changes and significant improvements are needed. Some expressed serious concerns that the healthcare system needs complete rebuilding to facilitate the management of NCD and war-related injury. They perceived important barriers to effective management of NCD and war injury such as poor hospital infrastructure and logistics, shortage of micro and sub-specialities and essential resources. Participants also expressed a dilemma and troubles in communication and interactions, especially during emergencies or crises. The informants stressed the unused of updated clinical management guidelines. There was a consensus regarding poor shared-care/task sharing, partnership, and cooperation among healthcare facilities. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that fundamental changes and significant reforms are needed in the health system to make healthcare services more effective, timely, and efficient. The study disclosed the non-use of clinical guidelines as well as suboptimal sectorial tasksharing among different stakeholders and healthcare providers. A clear and comprehensive healthcare policy considering the gaps in the system must be adopted for the improvement and development of care in the PHS. Keywords: NCD, management, Palestinian health system, perception, war injuryCorrespondence الخلفية: تواجه فلسطين ، مثل غيرها من البلدان منخفضة الدخل ، وباءً متزايدًا للأمراض غير المعدية (NCD) واتجاهًا لإصابات الحرب. غالبًا ما تمثل إدارة المشكلات الصحية تحديًا خطيرًا لنظام الصحة الفلسطيني (PHS). يعد فهم تصورات مقدمي الرعاية الصحية أمرًا ضروريًا في استكشاف الفجوات في النظام الصحي لتطوير تدخل رعاية صحية فعال. للأسف ، تم إهمال البحوث الصحية حول إدارة الأمراض غير المعدية وإصابات الحرب إلى حد كبير ولم تحظ باهتمام كبير. لذلك ، هدفت الدراسة إلى استكشاف وجهات نظر مقدمي الرعاية الصحية فيما يتعلق بالأمراض غير المعدية وإدارة إصابات الحرب في الرعاية الصحية الأولية في قطاع غزة. الطرق: تم استخدام منهج الدراسة النوعية ، بناءً على أربع مناقشات جماعية مركزة (FGDs) تتضمن استراتيجية أخذ عينات هادفة من 30 مقدم رعاية صحية من ثلاثة مستشفيات عامة رئيسية في قطاع غزة. تم استخدام دليل موضوع شبه منظم ، وتم تحليل بيانات مقابلات مجموعة التركيز باستخدام تحليل محتوى البيان. تمت الموافقة على الدراسة من قبل مجلس البحوث الصحية الفلسطيني (PHRC) للمصادقة الأخلاقية. النتائج: من منظور مقدمي الرعاية الصحية ، ظهرت أربعة موضوعات رئيسية والعديد من المواضيع الفرعية من تحليل المحتوى الظاهر الوصفي: أداء نظام الرعاية الصحية ؛ التحديات المتعلقة بالنظام ؛ التحديات المتعلقة بالمرضى ؛ استراتيجيات وإجراءات للتغلب على التحديات وتحسين الرعاية. ناقش المخبرون بشكل متكرر أنه على الرغم من بعض الجوانب الإيجابية في النظام ، هناك حاجة إلى تغييرات جوهرية وتحسينات مهمة. أعرب البعض عن مخاوف جدية من أن نظام الرعاية الصحية يحتاج إلى إعادة بناء كاملة لتسهيل إدارة الأمراض غير المعدية والإصابات المرتبطة بالحرب. لقد لاحظوا وجود عوائق مهمة أمام الإدارة الفعالة للأمراض غير المعدية وإصابات الحرب مثل البنية التحتية السيئة للمستشفيات والخدمات اللوجستية ، ونقص التخصصات الدقيقة والفرعية والموارد الأساسية. كما عبر المشاركون عن معضلة ومشاكل في التواصل والتفاعلات ، خاصة أثناء حالات الطوارئ أو الأزمات. شدد المخبرين على عدم استخدام إرشادات الإدارة السريرية المحدثة. كان هناك توافق في الآراء بشأن ضعف الرعاية المشتركة / تقاسم المهام ، والشراكة ، والتعاون بين مرافق الرعاية الصحية. الخلاصة: تشير نتائجنا إلى الحاجة إلى تغييرات جوهرية وإصلاحات مهمة في النظام الصحي لجعل خدمات الرعاية الصحية أكثر فعالية وفي الوقت المناسب وكفاءة. كشفت الدراسة عن عدم استخدام الإرشادات السريرية بالإضافة إلى تقاسم المهام القطاعية دون المستوى الأمثل بين مختلف أصحاب المصلحة ومقدمي الرعاية الصحية. يجب تبني سياسة رعاية صحية واضحة وشاملة تأخذ بعين الاعتبار الثغرات الموجودة في النظام لتحسين وتطوير الرعاية الصحية في خدمات الصحة العامة. الكلمات المفتاحية: الأمراض غير المعدية ، الإدارة ، النظام الصحي الفلسطيني ، الإدراك ، إصابة الحرب ، المراسلات

This scoping review was commenced as a collaboration within the NordicHealth Promotion Research Network (NHPRN). The overall aim was to explore how research under the label ‘health promotion’ was undertaken in a Nordic context. The search for dissertations published in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden was limited to the years 2008 to 2018. Manual searches of university websites, as well as different databases in the Nordic countries, were required for collecting dissertations from all universities. The collection of dissertations was more difficult than expected. There were 56 published PhD dissertations from 6 universities in Denmark, 51 from 8 universities in Finland, 0 from Iceland, 53 from 7 universities in Norway and 193 from 22 universities in Sweden. Almost half of the analysed dissertations combined qualitative and quantitative methods. About one-third of the dissertations had a settings approach, followed by a societal approach and individual approach. Finland and Sweden presented more intervention studies than the other countries. A majority of the intervention studies included individual lifestyle issues. Based on the analysis of the research approaches, more dissertations embracing societal perspectives and broader determinants of health may be recommended for future Nordic dissertations.

School achievement has increasingly come into focus during the last decades. The overall aim of this report is to highlight the need for knowledge for promoting health and development among school-aged children in the Nordic countries. Learning in school and for life is a key element for future well-being and quality of life. The present analysis did not have the resources nor time to do a systematic review. Therefore, a more selective approach was taken based on previous reviews and partly working as a scoping review. The different sections of the report conclude with a list of knowledge gaps and concerns. The research methodology in the relevant disciplinary fields are diverse and is also affected by the paradigm war, that is, difference scientific approaches do not share basic assumptions, research procedures and analytical methods. Therefore, an introductory section deals with this challenge. What is needed in this field is scientific knowledge as well as practical knowledge and practical wisdom to guide the further development of the school system. The school systems in the Nordic countries are similar but also different. We can learn from each other both from successes and failures, which merits a brief overview of the Nordic school systems follows. The school for all has been a joint characteristic of the Nordic school system, but it has been challenges by the neo-liberal policies such as school choices and privatisation. School achievement is a major focus in this report. However, in order to do multi-country comparison, the development of the international large-scale assessments has been of crucial as a research infrastructure. The report gives some recent results from the 2018 PISA study. This study concerns mainly three different aspects of inequality in school achievements. (i) Gender differences in school achievement are a universal finding. (i) Gender differences in school achievement are a universal finding. Boys are falling behind girls. What do we know about this, what impact does it have and what can be done to make a school where each child can grow and reach their full potential? (ii) Socioeconomic differences in school achievement are among the findings in most countries, so also in the Nordic welfare states. This may seem paradoxical. (iii) Health development is also associated with school achievement. We have learnt from longitudinal studies the there is a reciprocal relationship between mental health and learning. The report describes a series of concern regarding methodology, theoretical perspective, policy aspects, ethical and political aspects. There is a need for scientific knowledge, practical knowledge, and practical wisdom to guide the further development of the Nordic school systems. This can be achieved by bridging different knowledge gaps through studies of different educational practice, interventions and measures; by using systematic reviews to summarize what already is known; by doing original comparative research; by using the potentials of the unique infrastructure and competence in registry-based research as well as the best available evaluative research designs and practice-based designs; and by increasing research collaboration between Nordic researchers in relevant fields such as educational science, cognitive neuroscience, developmental psychology (developmental science), sociology of education, child public health and policy science. Moreover, the research should be concerned with ethical and political issues of the selected approaches. Research to bridge knowledge gaps in five different regards is suggested: (1) Trends: How is the situation; (2) Consequences: How important; (3) Mechanisms: why; (4) Interventions: What can be done; and (5) Policy and implementation: What can be done on a national level? The following measures are suggested for supporting Nordic research in this field: (1) Collaboration grants for Nordic researchers that can pool data and resources for in-depth analysis of trends, mechanism, consequences, interventions, and policy/implementation. (2) Support to infrastructure for Nordic comparative research. (3) Research grants to researchers that plan, supported by systematic review of previous research, and conduct original research on issues like: · School for all in the Nordic countries – trends, challenges, and remedies in the neoliberal era · Mechanisms behind the socioeconomic, gender and health inequalities in school achievement · Controlled studies of measures taken for improving socioeconomic, gender and health equality in school achievement · Studies aiming at improving the working environment in schools including children, parents and school staff in research and development · Studies of physical and mental health, and school achievement: educational trajectory for children in the Nordic countries · Health promotion in schools in the Nordic Countries: studies of educational practice, programmes and whole-school-approach research school. (4) a research school in this field could be a measure that facilitate the training of next generation of researchers in the Nordic countries. This could be an important link between senior Nordic researcher that jointly manage the research school. Positive Mental Health among School-aged Children in the Nordic Countries

Adolescence is an important developmental period. Young people face many pressures and challenges, including growing academic expectations, changing social relationships with family and peers, and the physical and emotional changes associated with maturation. Mental health is a broad concept, including positive mental health, mental health problems and psychiatric diseases. This introductory paper addresses the issue of positive mental health, and how existing data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study (HBSC) may be used to deepen our knowledge of developments in mental health among adolescents in the Nordic countries. The Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children study is a WHO collaborative cross-national study that now includes 48 countries, collecting data every four years from 1984 to 2018 on health, well-being, health behaviour and social environments. Data collection is carried out in school classes via self-completion of questionnaires. An asset of the study is that the HBSC focuses on understanding young people’s health in their social context at family, peer, school, neighbourhood, and country levels. The investment in the HBSC study gives unique opportunities for high-quality research and monitoring in the Nordic countries. The on-going Nordic research collaboration on positive mental health among adolescents uses the HBSC study as the research infrastructure for analysing trends as well as collecting new data on positive mental health. This special issue reports on trends when positive perspectives have been guiding the analysis of available data. The present research explores the potential of Nordic collaboration and comparative studies of school-aged children in the Nordic countries. publishedVersion