1. Title of the project :  EXPLORING THE ROLE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS IN PROMOTING STUDENTS’ MENTAL HEALTH IN UDUPI DISTRICT: KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTISES.

2. Type of Study :  Prospective cross sectional study.

3. Aims & objectives :AIM: To explore knowledge,attitude and practices on mental health and asses mental health literacy among school physical education teachers in Udupi district.

Objectives of the study:

1.To explore knowledge, attitude and practise of physical education teachers towards identification and coping strategies related to mental health development among young players.

2.To explore the mental health literacy among physical education teachers of Udupi district.

3.To explore the factors affecting mental health issues identification and management among physical education teachers in young players.

4. Justification for study (whether of national significance with rationale) In the world we live students face various challenges that can affect their overall well-being, including mental health. Physical education plays a vital role in students’ lives, not only in promoting physical fitness but also in supporting their mental well-being. This study aims to understand the knowledge and perceptions of physical education teachers about mental health-related concerns in students. By understanding mental health issues, teachers can create an environment that supports both physical and mental wellness. When teachers are sensitive to mental health concerns, students are more likely to feel understood and engaged. This can positively impact their participation in physical education activities because teachers are often the first to notice changes in students’ behaviour. If teachers are knowledgeable about mental health, they can identify signs of distress early, enabling timely intervention and support.

5. Departments involved :

·       Department of Social and Health Innovation, Prasanna school of Public Health (PSPH),Manipal Academy of Higher Education(MAHE)

·       Department of Pharmaceutics,Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences(MCOPS),Manipal

·       Physical Education Department of Schools in Udupi District

6. Study period : 6 months(September 2023 to February 2024)

7. Sample size: Time bound

8. Materials and methods : 

            a) Inclusion Criteria:

·       Physical education teachers who teach in udipi district upto 10 th standard.

·       Teachers and coaches  willing for the study

      b)Exclusion Criteria:

·       Teachers and coaches not willing for the study

            b) Biological materials required (type - blood, tissue etc and quantity): Not applicable

            c) Statistical methods : Descriptive statistics like Mean and ±SD will be used for continuous variables. For categorical variables ,frequency and proportion will be used .Graphical and pictorial tools like Pie Chart and Bar Graphs will be used to project participants level.

Inferential Statistical tools like chi square test will be used in the analysis.

            d) Tools used: a self designed questionnaire

9. Detailed description of procedure / processes :  Plan for gathering data from participants using validated  self designed questionnaire after obtaining approval from the ethical committee and Microsoft forms will also be used to collect the data online.

The study is time bound in which physical education teachers teaching in Udupi district are included. Consent from the District Education Officer(DEO)/Deputy Director of Education(DDE)  will be taken. A written consent  form will also be provided  to the participants and their consent will be taken. The participants receiving the survey’s regional language translated(if required) validated questionnaire will be briefed about its contents. The level of mental health literacy using the survey data will be analyzed using the data science tools.

10. Outcome measures : data will be obtained through the questionnaire regarding the mental health concerns among young players by physical education teachers in Udupi district up to 10 th and how do they deal with it and it shall be assessed.

11. Potential risks and benefits :

Risk: Minor increase over minimal risk.

Benefits: The study will offer facts concerning the mental health problems faced by young players and the ways in which they try to deal with it.

12. Ethical considerations and methods to address issues : The study protocol will be submitted for approval to the Institutional Ethics Committee(IEC).

The study’s participants confidentiality will be rigourously respected.

13. Budget (give details) and proposed funding source : Self funded

14. Review of literature (within 1000 words) :.A mixed method design was conducted and data was collected through logs ,surveys and interviews and a peer based intervention was done. A total of eleven adolescent sports teams participated which included six lacrosse teams, four field hockey teams and one wrestling team . The team talk intervention inspired by help out a mate workshop was done to increase participants ability to recognize mental health problems and assist peers experiencing such problems.Pre intervention and Post intervention surveys were done and also parent and coach interviews were taken to ask them whether the adoption and implementation within the clubs can be considered. The major gap was that only 8% of clubs were open to recruitment with only 1% scheduling an intervention. The feasibility and acceptability of a mental health literacy intervention was low among clubs whereas the participants. .So the study concludes that the adaptation and implementation are necessary to enhance positive teammate relationships and keep necessary check on mental health literacy for adolescent sportspeople (Panza et al. 2022)

The study was conducted on eight elite striving lean sports athletes. The main information covered were demographic information, sports experiences and goal setting within the sports .The observation showed that the pressure to perform well in school as well as in sports if they choose sports as a career option,maintainence of body weight demands, necessarily regulations on food, no social life or meetings outside acquaintances or friends are few of the reasons which affected mental well being of the young athletes. The major gap identified during the finding includes the lack of care and support to athletes to be able to perform well in both athletics and academic orientation. The programs conducted for development of sports should be more adequate in helping athletes specially transitioning from junior to senior levels and it is very important to minimize the stigma associated with mental health of athletes (Lundqvist et al. 2023)

                                         .This study was conducted to update an existing systematic review which focused on how sports associated mental health interventions and awareness programs can improve mental health knowledge and well being among coaches and athletes.In this review ,18 additional studies were included which revealed how mental health awareness in sports has gained a wider agenda and improvements have been made in methodological quality but there are still gaps in theoretical input and data collection.The conclusion of the updated systematic review focused on the importance for theory based intervention programs that can reduce overall burden on global mental health (Breslin et al. 2022)

15. References :

1.     Panza M, Redman G, Vierimaa M, Vella SA, Bopp M, Evans MB. Developing and evaluating a peer-based mental health literacy intervention with adolescent athletes. PloS one. 2022 Dec 15;17(12):e0274761.

2.     Lundqvist C, Schary DP, Eklöf E, Zand S, Jacobsson J. Elite lean athletes at sports high schools face multiple risks for mental health concerns and are in need of psychosocial support. Plos one. 2023 Apr 21;18(4):e0284725.

3.     Breslin G, Shannon S, Cummings M, Leavey G. An updated systematic review of interventions to increase awareness of mental health and well-being in athletes, coaches, officials and parents. Systematic Reviews. 2022 Dec;11(1):1-29.

4.     English M, Wallace L, Evans J, Diamond S, Caperchione CM. The impact of sport and physical activity programs on the mental health and social and emotional wellbeing of young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians: A systematic review. Preventive Medicine Reports. 2022 Feb 1;25:101676.