Lay summary
Disadvantaged children, usually Maori or Pacific, suffer disproportionately from preventable diseases. Accessibility to healthcare and preventative measures are denied them. This translates into high hospitalisation rates for infectious diseases such as rheumatic fever with long term consequences or skin diseases and their sequelae (e.g. kidney and bone disease), child pedestrian injury and other conditions. In schools we have shown that rheumatic fever can be prevented by treating sore throats in schools with high acceptability. Taking advantage of interest shown by Counties Manukau DHB to investigate this approach, we plan to evaluate an extension including skin disease and injury control. We will measure hospitalisations. This feasibility study will investigate the acceptability, practicability, sustainability and cost of this school-based household/whanau approach within one high risk school community to eventually expand to 4 high risk suburban areas in the Auckland region.