The Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital’s CHAMP Program (Changing High-Risk Asthma in Memphis through Partnership) is a collaborative that serves children ages 2–18 in Memphis, Shelby County, Tennessee, who are identified as having high-risk asthma. This program is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services*, as a round 1 innovations project.
Of CHAMP’s patients, 95 percent are African American children who suffer from poorly controlled asthma that results in preventable hospital and emergency room encounters, missed school days, and diminished quality of life. They primarily live in rental properties characterized by environmental hazards—such as mold, mildew and cockroaches—that exacerbate asthma episodes, and many of them move frequently or spend significant periods of time in more than one residence over the course of a week or month. Overall, asthma affects up to 13.5 percent of children in Memphis; in 2010, almost 4,000 children were seen in emergency rooms in Shelby County for asthma-related problems. Pediatric asthma hospitalizations cost the Tennessee Medicaid system (TennCare) $2.1 million in avoidable hospitalizations and an additional $2.6 million for emergency department visits.
To address factors that result in asthma care that is fragmented and typically not well managed, CHAMP created an Asthma Registry, which includes extensive data from enrollees’ electronic medical records. The program deploys a team of sub-specialist medical providers, as well as community-based staff members, who work to educate families and address barriers to self-management. CHAMP’s various program components work in an integrated fashion to achieve its ambitious goals, which include seeking to reduce asthma deaths among its target population to zero by June 15, 2015, and lowering overall health care costs for children served by more than $4 million by June 30, 2015. As of the quarter ending December 31, 2014, CHAMP’s 464 enrollees have seen, among other gains, a 40-percent reduction in the percentage of children hospitalized each quarter for asthma-related diagnoses. Data through December 31, 2014, indicate a 52-percent reduction in cost of care per child per year, in comparison to the baseline cost prior to CHAMP enrollment. CHAMP shows great promise for meeting and exceeding its stated goals.
*CHAMP is supported by Grant number 1C1CMS331046-01-00 from the Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The contents of this document are solely the responsibility of Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, Division of Community Health and Well Being and do not necessarily represent the official views of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or any of its agencies.