Association of work related chronic stressors and psychiatric symptoms in a Swiss sample of police officers : a cross sectional questionnaire study

Purpose (1) To identify work related stressors that are associated with psychiatric symptoms in a Swiss sample of policemen and (2) to develop a model for identifying officers at risk for developing mental health problems. Method The study design is cross sectional. A total of 354 male police officers answered a questionnaire assessing a wide spectrum of work related stressors. Psychiatric symptoms were assessed using the "TST questionnaire" (Langner in J Health Hum Behav 4, 269-276, 1962). Logistic regression with backward procedure was used to identify a set of variables collectively associated with high scores for psychiatric symptoms. Results A total of 42 (11.9%) officers had a high score for psychiatric symptoms. Nearly all potential stressors considered were significantly associated (at P < 0.05) with a high score for psychiatric symptoms. A significant model including 6 independent variables was identified: lack of support from superior and organization OR = 3.58 (1.58-8.13), self perception of bad quality work OR = 2.99 (1.35-6.59), inadequate work schedule OR = 2.84 (1.22-6.62), high mental/intellectual demand OR = 2.56 (1.12-5.86), age (in decades) OR = 1.82 (1.21-2.73), and score for physical environment complaints OR = 1.30 (1.03-1.64). Conclusions Most of work stressors considered are associated with psychiatric symptoms. Prevention should target the most frequent stressors with high association to symptoms. Complaints of police officers about stressors should receive proper consideration by the management of public administration. Such complaints might be the expression of psychiatric caseness requiring medical assistance. Particular attention should be given to police officers complaining about many stressors identified in this study's multiple model. [Authors]

Library-instructional materials center skills, 1968

The School Library-Instructional Materials Center should be designed to serve the total curriculum of a school. Much of a teacher's learning comes when he works with a librarian to provide his students wit the necessary and appropriate skills for a unit of s study.

Elämänlaatu ja iäkkäiden kaatumisten ehkäisy

Quality of life and fall prevention among the aged Improvement of quality of life is considered to be one of the most important goals of prevention, treatment and rehabilitation among the aged. The study aimed to describe and assess fall prevention interventions as a quality of life indicator, and to describe the social dimension of health-related quality of life among the aged. In addition, it aimed to assess the effects of fall prevention intervention on quality of life among the aged. The study was implemented by using a methodological triangulation. The data in the systematic review was retrieved from the databasis of medical and nursing sciences. Home-dwelling aged (n=19) participated in the qualitative study of a social dimension of quality of life. The data was gathered by the thematic interview method. The quantitative multifactorial fall prevention study comprised 591 participants, either the aged living at home or in sheltered housing, showing an increased risk of falling. Participants were randomized into an intervention or a control group. Follow-up measurements were carried out after a 12 month intervention. The data was collected by the 15D quality of life instrument and a structured questionnaire. Based on the systematic review, only in a few studies fall prevention produced positive effects on dimensions of quality of life (physical function, social function, vitality, mental health, environmental domain). Based on the thematic interview the social dimension of quality of life consisted of three themes: personal values, personal milieu and personal daily life. Based on the fall prevention program, depressive symptoms and distress decreased, managing in usual activities improved, sexual activity and phone contacts increased among men. In women, managing in usual activities improved, socializing increased and discomfort and symptoms decreased. Within the groups, self-perceived health improved among women in the intervention group and among men in the control groups. In addition, fear of falling and feelings of insecurity reduced among women in the intervention group. Personal daily life with its activities opened up new perspectives into the social dimension of good quality of life, which was emphasized especially in the interviews of the oldest participants. Multifactorial fall prevention can affect positively some physical and psychosocial dimensions of quality of life among the community-dwelling aged. Additional studies with larger sample sizes, longer follow-up periods and multiple outcome measures are needed. Fall prevention intervention may affect quality of life by different mechanisms, and the quantitative and qualitative assessment of its effects should also be included in the interventions of randomized controlled trials.

Laboratório de resíduos químicos do campus USP-São Carlos: resultados da experiência pioneira em gestão e gerenciamento de resíduos químicos em um campus universitário

A novel and unique in a brazilian university experience for rigorous handling of chemical residues of research and teaching is described. The activities since 1998 of a laboratory for the adequate treatment and recovery of chemicals at the São Carlos Campus of the University of São Paulo are summarized. The necessity of environment conscience future professional is enhanced.

El proyecto 'Ciutat, territori, paisatge': un recurso innovador para la educación en el paisaje en la enseñanza secundaria = The project 'City, territory, countryside', an innovative resource for educating about the countryside in secondary education

The far-reaching, fast-moving changes –diffuse urbanisation, building infrastructure, moving away from agricultural space, etc.– suffered by the countryside in most European countries makes it important to have education about the countryside in place to help secondary students interpret their environment and assess the importance of managing the territory to achieve a medium ordered at human scale. The project «City, territory, countryside» is a set of materials for secondary level that aim for reflection on the countryside, work on basic competences and educating about civic-minded attitudes in students

Lapsen sosiaalisen kompetenssin tukeminen – vanhempien epäsuorat ja suorat vaikutustavat

Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan vanhempien havaintoja ja käsityksiä lapsen sosiaalisesta kompetenssista. Lapsen sosiaalisesta kompetenssista tarkastelun kohteena ovat erityisesti vertaissuhteet, sosiaaliset taidot ja sosiaalinen käyttäytyminen. Tarkoituksena on selvittää vanhempien näkemyksiä lapsen sosiaalisesta verkostosta ja lapsesta sosiaalisena toimijana. Kiinnostuksen kohteena on myös, miten vanhemmat vaikuttamaan lapsen sosiaaliseen kompetenssiin. Vanhempien vaikutuksessa voidaan erottaa epäsuora ja suora vaikutus. Vanhempien epäsuoraan vaikutukseen kuuluvat perheen sosioekonomiset tekijät, vanhemmuuteen ja lastenkasvatukseen liittyvät käytännöt sekä lapsen ja vanhemman välinen vuorovaikutus. Suora vaikutus sisältää vanhempien eri roolit ja tehtävät sosiaalisen kompetenssin edistämiseksi. Vanhempien epäsuorilla ja suorilla vaikutustavoilla on havaittu olevan merkittävää vaikutusta lapsen sosiaalisen kompetenssiin muotoutumiseen ja sen laatuun. Tutkimuksessa selvitetään vertaissuhdeongelmaisten ja ei-ongelmaisten lasten vanhempien välisiä eroja näissä vaikutustavoissa. Tutkimuksessa hyödynnetään kyselylomake- ja haastatteluaineistoja. Kyselylomakeaineisto (N=156) kerättiin ”Origins of Exclusion in Early Childhood”-tutkimusprojektissa, jossa tutkittiin lasten vertaissuhteita, sosiaalisia taitoja sekä sosiaalista käyttäytymistä kolmen vuoden seurantatutkimuksena päiväkodista kouluun. Perhekysely toteutettiin lasten ollessa kuusivuotiaita. Vanhempien haastatteluaineisto (N=55) koostuu projektissa mukana olleiden lasten vanhempien teemahaastatteluista. Perhekyselyä analysoidaan tilastollisin analyysimenetelmin. Laadullisen aineiston analyysimenetelmänä käytetään sisällönanalyysia. Vanhempien käsityksissä lasten sosiaalinen verkosto rakentui kotiympäristössä, koulussa, päiväkodissa sekä suvun ja harrastusten parissa muodostuneista suhteista. Tutkimustulosten perusteella on havaittavissa, että vertaissuhdeongelmaisten ja ei-ongelmaisten lasten sosiaaliset verkostot ovat osin erilaiset. Vanhempien arviointien mukaan myös lasten sosiaalisissa taidoissa, käyttäytymisessä, asennoitumisessa sosiaaliseen kanssakäymiseen sekä ryhmään ja leikkeihin liittyvissä strategioissa on eroavaisuuksia. Tutkimuksen pohjalta voidaan todeta, että vanhemmat pystyvät arvioimaan hyvin yksityiskohtaisesti lapsensa sosiaalisia taitoja ja käyttäytymistä. Kaikilla vanhemmilla ei kuitenkaan ollut riittävästi tietoa lasten kaveripiiristä tai sen laadusta eikä lasten sosiaalisesta orientaatiosta. Vanhempien epäsuorissa vaikutustavoissa oli eroja, mutta myös yhtäläisyyksiä. Sosioekonomisia tekijöitä koskevan tarkastelun perusteella vertaissuhdeongelmaisten lasten perheiden taloudelliset ongelmat, isien työttömyys ja lapsen erityisen tuen tarve olivat yhteydessä lapsen sosiaalisten suhteiden ongelmiin. Lähes kaikki tutkimukseen osallistuneet vanhemmat kokivat vanhemmuuden ja kasvatustehtävän kuitenkin hyvin myönteisenä ja tyytyväisyyttä tuottavana asiana elämässä. Valtaosa vanhemmista piti lapsen ja aikuisen välistä vuorovaikutusta positiivisena, vaikka lapsen kanssa ei aina ollutkaan helppoa tulla toimeen. Tyytyväisyydestä huolimatta äidit näkivät itsessään enemmän kehittymisen tarpeita vanhempana kuin isät. Vanhemmuudessa korostuivat ohjaaminen ja kontrolli, mutta myös hoiva, lämpö ja vastavuoroisuus. Hoiva ja lämpö sekä rajojen asettaminen askarruttivat vanhempia suuresti. Vertaissuhdeongelmaisten lasten vanhemmat tarvitsisivat opastusta ohjaavan vanhemmuuden löytämiseksi. Vertaissuhdeongelmaisten lasten vanhemmat kuvasivat kasvatuksen kuormittavuutta, ajan puutetta sekä muuntuvaa isyyttä ja äitiyttä ei-ongelmaisten lasten vanhempia enemmän. Työn ja perheen yhteensovittamisen vaikeus tuli myös esille vanhempien kuvauksissa. Kyvykkään vanhemmuuden kannalta epävirallinen läheisistä muodostunut tukiverkosto on tärkeä vanhemman apu ja kasvatuksen turva. Ensisijaisena tukitahona on epävirallinen verkosto, joka koostuu ystävistä, tuttavista, työtovereista, puolisosta ja omista vanhemmista. Vertaissuhdeongelmaisten lasten vanhempien mukaan arjen tukea ei kuitenkaan ole aina saatavilla, eikä tukiverkosto tyydyttänyt vanhempia. Vanhempien käsityksissä perheen vuorovaikutus sujui hyvin ja vastuu kodista ja kasvatustehtävästä oli molemmilla vanhemmilla tasavertaisesti. Käytännön vastuu kasvatuksesta sekä erilaisten taitojen opettamisesta lapsille kuului äitien tehtäviin. Vanhempien näkemyksissä lapsen sosiaalinen maailma rakentui lähiympäristön tarjoamista mahdollisuuksista. Vanhempien suoriin vaikutustapoihin liittyvien tulosten mukaan vanhemmat pitävät harrastuksia merkittävänä sosiaalista kompetenssia edistävänä tekijänä. Ei-ongelmaisilla lapsilla oli enemmän ja monipuolisempia harrastuksia kuin ongelmaisilla lapsilla. Vaikka vanhemmat eivät mieltäneetkään omaa toimintaansa kaveripiiriin ohjaamiseksi, heillä useinkin oli runsaasti erilaisia rooleja ja tehtäviä sosiaalisten suhteiden ja sosiaalisten taitojen opettamisessa. Lapsen sosiaalisten suhteiden organisoinnissa, ohjaamisessa, valvonnassa ja neuvonnassa oli vanhempiryhmien välillä eroja. Vertaissuhdeongelmaisten lasten vanhemmat eivät olleet riittävän hyvin perillä lapsen taidoista ja kyvykkyydestä tuottaakseen oikea-aikaista ohjausta ja tukeakseen lasta riittävästi sopivilla tavoilla. Vanhempien toimintaa näyttää ohjaavan vakaasti se uskomus, että lapsen kaverisuhteet ovat pelkästään hänen oma asiansa. Vanhemmat arvostivat paljon sosiaalisia taitoja ja pyrkivät opettamaan niitä lapsilleen systemaattisesti. Ohjaamisen tavoissa vanhemmat poikkesivat toisistaan. Tutkimus antaa viitteitä, että eiongelmaisten lasten vanhemmat ovat sensitiivisempiä, vastavuoroisempia ja lapsen näkökulmaa ja tarpeita lähtökohtanaan pitäviä sekä tunnetaitoihin ja tunnetilan käsittelyyn keskittyvämpiä kuin ongelmaisten lasten vanhemmat. Vanhempien ja lasten vuorovaikutuksen vaikeudet, ylimalkainen ja epäjohdonmukainen sosiaalisten taitojen, käyttäytymisen sekä suhteiden ohjaus sekä monet perheen voimavarojen puutteet voivat haitata vakavasti lapsen sosiaalisen kompetenssin kehittymistä. Vanhemmilla on kuitenkin taitoa arvioida lapsensa sosiaalista kyvykkyyttä ja halua toimia hyvin kasvatustehtävässään. Vanhemmuuden tukemisessa olisivatkin tärkeitä epävirallisen tukiverkoston lisäksi lähiympäristön perheille ja lapsille suunnatut palvelut, monitahoinen yhteistyö perheiden, lasten ja heidän kanssaan työskentelevien ammattilaisten kesken sekä yhteiskunnan perheitä koskevat säädökset ja tukitoimet.

The Environmental Status of the Port of HaminaKotka

This study is a part of the Ecologically Friendly Port Ust-Luga (EFP) project. The purpose of this study is to examine the environmental status of the Finnish ports and, more specifically, the Port of HaminaKotka. An analysis of the environmental status is performed mainly as a literature review, because the Finnish ports must comply with Finnish and EU legislation and with the binding international regulations and conventions created by different organizations. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has done groundbreaking work in the field of maritime safety and maritime environmental protection. The MARPOL convention has a great impact on decreasing pollution from international shipping and it applies to 99% of the world’s merchant tonnage. Pollution prevention covers: Oil pollution, Chemical pollution, Air pollution and GHG Emissions, Dumping of Wasted and Other Matters, Garbage, Sewage, Port Reception Facilities, Special Areas under MARPOL and Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas. There is also Pollution Prevention for other treaties like anti-fouling systems used on ships, the transfer of alien species by ships’ ballast water and the environmentally sound recycling of ships. There are more than twenty different EU and international regulations that influence ports and port operations in Finland. In addition, there is also national legislation that has an effect on Finnish ports. For the most part, the legislation for ports is common in the EU area, but the biggest and most important difference between the legislation in Finland and other EU countries is due to the Act on Environmental Impact Assessment Procedure. The Act states that the environmental impact assessment procedure shall be applied to projects that may have significant adverse environmental impacts, due to the special features of Finland`s nature and environment. In this Act, the term environmental impact refers to the direct and indirect effects inside and outside Finnish territory of a project or operations on human health, living conditions and amenity; soil, water, air, climate, organisms, interaction between them and biodiversity; community structure, buildings, landscape, townscape and cultural heritage; utilization of natural resources. In Finland, the Environmental Permit requires that ports collect all necessary information concerning environmental effects and make required reports to the Finnish authorities, stakeholders and the public. Commonly, environmental reporting is public and environmental achievements are emphasized in reporting and in media. At the moment, the problem in environmental reporting is that it’s difficult to compare data from different ports. There is enough data concerning the environmental effects and performance, but the manner of reporting and the quality of the data varies between ports. There are differences in the units and codes used, in some cases the information is not sufficient and it can even be rather unreliable. There are also differences regarding the subjects that are emphasized in reporting.

Case-Yhtiön Yksikön henkilöstön vaikutusmahdollisuudet työhyvinvoinnin kehittämiseen muutosprosessissa

Työhyvinvointi sisältää työntekijän terveydellisten tekijöiden lisäksi henkisen pääoman näkökulman, joka kattaa työntekijän fyysisen ja psyykkisen hyvinvoinnin, tiedot ja taidot, ammatillisen osaamisen, sekä koulutustaustan. Jotta organisaatiot voisivat menestyä, ja vastata sidosryhmiensä odotuksiin aiempaa tehokkaammin, yksittäisten työntekijöiden tulisi tiedostaa oma roolinsa yritysten liiketoiminnallisten päämäärien saavuttamisessa. Henkilöstön tulee ymmärtää yrityksen strategia ja arvot, sekä oman työnsä merkitys niiden toteuttamisessa. Hyvinvoivassa työyhteisössä vuorovaikutus on avointa, ja jos organisaation henkilöstö ei koe työilmapiiriä tarpeeksi laadukkaaksi, voivat töiden tehokkuus, laatu, sekä tuloksellisuus kärsiä. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena on ollut osallistua työyhteisöiden ympärillä käytävään aktiiviseen keskusteluun, joka käsitteellistää erilaisia työhyvinvoinnin ilmiöitä organisaatioihin ja niiden toimintaympäristöihin kohdistuvissa muutoksissa. Tieteellisten työhyvinvointiin ja organisaatiomuutoksiin kohdistuvien teorioiden lisäksi tutkimuksessa toteutettiin laadullinen kyselytutkimus yksittäisen työntekijän näkökulmasta, ja sen tarkoituksena on ollut tutkia kohdeorganisaation yksikön henkilöstön vaikutusmahdollisuuksia omaan työhyvinvointiinsa. Vastausten kokoamisen, sekä tulosten analysoinnin perusteella voidaan todeta että työhyvinvointi on koko henkilöstön vastuulla työntekijöiden asemasta riippumatta.

Hirsch's index: a case study conducted at the Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo

An analysis of scientific bibliographic productivity using the Hirsch h-index, information from the Institute of Scientific Information database and the Curriculum Lattes (CNPq, Brazil) was performed at the Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo (FFCLRP-USP) that has four departments in natural, biological and social sciences. Bibliometric evaluations of undergraduate programs showed a better performance of the departments of Chemistry (P < 0.001) and Biology (P < 0.001) when compared to the departments of Physics and Mathematics and Psychology and Education. We also analyzed the scientific output of the six graduate programs of FFCLRP: Psychology, Psychobiology, Chemistry, Physics Applied to Medicine and Biology, Comparative Biology, and Entomology. The graduate program in Psychology presented a lower h-index (P < 0.001) and had fewer papers indexed by the ISI web of science (P < 0.001) when compared to the other graduate programs. The poorer performance of the Psychology program may be associated with the limited coverage by the Thompson Institute of Scientific Information database.

Gaining a better understanding of how Outward Bound Western Canada course outcomes are achieved : a research study /

This study examined how Outward Bound Western Canada (OBWC) course outcomes are achieved by exploring the relationships among course components, students' characteristics, and course outcomes. OBWC is a wilderness-based adventure education organization that helps students achieve outcomes such as increased self-awareness, self-confidence, motivation, interpersonal skills, concern for others, and concern for the environment. This study explored the ways in which the various components of courses and the characteristics of students contribute to determining the outcomes students experience as a result of their courses. The purpose of the study was to gain a better understanding of how OBWC course outcomes are achieved in order to strengthen adventure education theory, enhance practice at OBWC and other adventure education organizations, and provide a foundation for further research on this topic. As an interpretive case study, this study sought to describe how OBWC course outcomes are achieved and to provide interpretations of the research findings. Data was gathered from OBWC students and instructors using the quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques of questionnaire, interview, and observation. Data collected from 98 participants ensured a considerable breadth to the study, while interviews with a number of participants also enabled the collection of in-depth data. Analysis and triangulation of the data from the various sources allowed discernment of the research findings. A comprehensive and detailed picture of how course outcomes are achieved emerged from the findings. Twenty-nine course components were found to influence course outcomes, including various aspects of course activities, the physical environment, instructors, and the group. The findings indicated that certain course components were most influential in determining increases to students' self-awareness, self-confidence, self-reliance, self-esteem, self-concept, motivation, self-responsibility, interpersonal skills, concern for others, and concern for the environment. A number of course components were found to indirectly contribute to positive course outcomes by helping maximize the effectiveness of other components, by increasing students' motivation while on course, or by facilitating the processing and transference of new information. The findings also suggested that several course components either directly or indirectly affected course outcomes in negative ways. In addition, the gender, age, population, and expectations of students were found to play a role in determining the course outcomes they experienced and in determining which course components caused those outcomes. Interpretation of the findings resulted in the generation of research-based theory. The main theoretical argument derived from the results of the study was that course outcomes are influenced by a combination of course components and characteristics of students. More specifically, the theory generated by the study indicated that five groupings of factors contribute to course outcomes, including course activities, the physical environment, instructors, the group, and students' characteristics. The study was considered in relation to existing adventure education literature and larger theoretical issues. The generated theory and research findings were then used to develop suggestions for improving practice at OBWC and other adventure education organizations, as well as for enhancing future research studies.

Using stimulus equivalence to teach monetary skills to school-age children with autism

The present study evaluated the use of stimulus equivalence in teaching monetary skills to school aged children with autism. An AB within-subject design with periodic probes was used. At pretest, three participants demonstrated relation DA, an auditory-visual relation (matching dictated coin values to printed coin prices). Using a three-choice match-to-sample procedure, with a multi-component intervention package, these participants were taught two trained relations, BA (matching coins to printed prices) and CA (matching coin combinations to printed prices). Two participants achieved positive tests of equivalence, and the third participant demonstrated emergent performances with a symmetric and transitive relation. In addition, two participants were able to show generalization of learned skills with a parent, in a second naturalistic setting. The present research replicates and extends the results of previous studies by demonstrating that stimulus equivalence can be used to teach an adaptive skill to children with autism.

Comprehensive school health, the social determinants of health, and the health status of children

As children are becoming increasingly inactive and obese, there is an urgent need for effective early prevention and intervention programs. One solution is a comprehensive school health (CSH) program, a health promotion initiative aimed at educating students about healthy behaviours and lifestyles, which also provides a link between the school, students, families, and the surrounding community. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between different components of CSH programs, as well as three determinants of health (gender, social support, socio-economic status), and physical activity, on the aerobic fitness and body mass index (BMI) of children. A newly developed and pilot-tested survey derived from Health Canada's fourpart CSH model (instruction, social support, support services, and a healthy physical environment) was sent to elementary school principals. Data on the gender, physical activity, parental education, and social support levels of students from these schools were gathered from a previous study. Multiple regression procedures were conducted to estimate the relationships between CSH components, the social determinants of health, physical activity, and BMI and aerobic fitness. Results showed that three CSH components were significantly associated with both BMI and aerobic fitness values in children, but accounted for less than 5% of the variance in both variables. Physical activity partially mediated the relationship between the significant CSH components, BMI, and particularly aerobic fitness. Furthermore, the social determinant and physical activity variables played independent roles in aerobic fitness values. No moderating effects of the social determinants were discovered.

An empirical study of in-school and out-of-school day care

The purpose of this study was to determine if there were differences between in-school and out-of-school day care centres. Five centres housed in public schools and five housed in other locations were selected for the research. Aquality assessment was administered in each centre which examined the following components - physical environment, adult social structure and socia-emotional environment, children's socia-emotional environment, cognitive stimulation program and toys and equipment. Quantitative analysis using simple t-tests showed a significant difference between in-school and out-of-school day cares for the physical environment variable. Differences approached significance for the children's socia-emotional environment variable as well as overall quality. Qualitative analysis using a triangulated methodology revealed noticeable differences for every variable. The researcher concluded that both the quality of the physical environment and the capabilities of the administrators strongly influence the quality of the day care environment. This study also included an assessment of children's attitude toward learning. No significant difference was found between in-school and out-of-school centres.

Adult perceptions of student involvement in schoolyard gardening /

The purpose of this research is to investigate through adult perceptions what factors have enabled and limited student participation in schoolyard gardening, and how to support student involvement in schoolyard gardening. It is a collective case study of three schools in the Toronto District School Board (TDSB, Ontario, Canada) that are currently running a schoolyard gardening project. Sixteen interviews were conducted during May and June, 2005, and photos of the three schoolyard gardens were taken. The results show that the common factors that have enabled student participation in schoolyard gardening at the three schools are teacher's initiative and commitment, principal's leadership and support, parental involvement and donations, and the TDSB's EcoSchools program and workshops. The common limiting factors are time, money, and the unions' "work-to-rule" issue. The ways to support student involvement include teachers integrating the gardening into the curriculum; parents making donations to the school and creating a family gardening culture; principals supporting in money or budget and taking the lead; the TDSB providing funding, awards, incentives, and more maintenance; and the Ontario Ministry of Education supplying funding, curriculum link, and teacher training.

Comprehensive school health : an ethnographic case study

The purpose of this ethnographic case study was to describe the characteristics of one school's Comprehensive School Health (CSH) initiative and to explore the experiences of school community members in order to gain an understanding of how one school embraced a Comprehensive School Health approach. An elementary school (grades Junior Kindergarten to six) in Burlington, Ontario was the research site for this study. Multiple methods of data collection (observations, document analysis, interviews) were used in keeping with the ethnographic and case study approach. The data were coded using both a deductive and then inductive process (Merriam, 1998). From a deductive perspective, the coding system and the subsequent identification of categories were based on a priori categories identified by using the elements of CSH based on the Comprehensive School Health Consensus Statement prepared by the Canadian Association of School Health and the research questions. Findings included the role that various school community members as well as the implementation of different programs and policies played in applying a CSH approach. The impact ofthe physical environment was described as well as successes and challenges related to the school's experience in implementing CSH. Three main themes emerged that characterized this school's experience. The first theme relates to the fundamental question about CSH which is the school community's understanding o/the concept. The second theme focused on positive school culture and the third and most diverse theme was that of capacity. Engaging in CSH is a complex and long-term undertaking involving both the school and greater community. Based on the experiences of this school's community members, recommendations address the different levels of influence on the health of children.