41. Ziara,S., El-Khateeb,W., Skeik,M., Abu-Arkoub,O., Accorsi,S., and Cogo,C. Health Profile of the 1^st Grade School-Aged Children in Palestine: An Account of the National School Health Programme. Palestinian Ministry of Health and Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

This report aims at reviewing the health screening of the 1^st grade school-aged children in the governmental sector. Achievements and limitations are outlined, in order to identify priority areas for further improvement of school health practices and policies. A background of the Programme is provided, outlining the process of standardization of guidelines and procedures, and of homogenization of the information system between Gaza and the West Bank. The different aspects of the delivery process (medical examination, treatment, referral and follow up) are analyzed. Furthermore, an epidemiological profile of the target population I provided, giving a picture of the frequency of the screened diseases among the 1^st graders, studying their distribution according to the traditional criteria of time, place and person.