Decider Skills Program
From January to May of 2023 the WECHU Healthy Schools team, in partnership with our local school boards, piloted the Decider Skills Program in four schools. School nurses taught 12 social-emotional skills to 106 students over a 7-week period. The skills help students to recognize their own thoughts, feelings, and behaviours, enabling them to monitor and better manage their own emotions and mental health. At the conclusion of the session, 67.5% of the students could name and explain at least two Decider Skills.
Based on feedback, the program was condensed to five weeks and focused on grade 4 students at higher needs schools for the 2023-2024 school year. In October 2023, the Decider Skills Program was completed in eight schools to 311 students. At the end of the session, 76% of students were able to name and describe two of the skills they had learned. Students indicated they use the skills frequently at home and school.
Physical Activity Sedentary Behaviour (PASB) Summary
In 2023, the WECHU implemented several education and awareness-building activities to encourage residents to become more physically active. This included the following:
- 18,000 individuals were reached through social media messaging.
- 3,600 targeted mail-outs were distributed for those living on financial assistance.
- 3 educational presentations were provided to high priority groups.
- 4 community engagement events were provided in high priority neighbourhoods.
A review was also completed that examined the built environment of the City of Windsor as it relates to the health impacts of physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Using the results, recommendations were prepared and shared with the municipality to support future improvements to the physical activity landscape of Windsor.