Community Health/Outreach Worker Tool

The Inner City Respiratory Alliance is designed to reduce the burden of respiratory disease in minority communities and decrease healthcare disparities through a unique partnership and collaboration between Not One More Life, Inc and The CHEST Foundation's One Breath Campaign. Using a coordinated 3 part strategy The Inner City Respiratory Alliance provides tools, education, and networking resources to local health care providers. The Outreach portion of the program assists local providers in setting up free screening, assessment, respiratory education, and follow-up referrals for participants in their communities who exhibit poor respiratory health.

The Inner City Respiratory Alliance is the first partnership to work with local providers, educators and national thought leaders to improve respiratory care in minority communities. Among the resources available to participants are data tracking programs, patient and provider education, Spanish and English screening/assessment forms, and a tool kit to facilitate local outreach events.

Becoming an Asthma Educator and Care Manager Objectives:
1. Describe the burden of asthma in the United States.
2. Outline key components of asthma management from the Expert Panel Report 3: Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma.
3. Evaluate patients and caregivers educational needs and select management tools to optimize partnerships in care.

Findings from the Washington Heights/Inwood Network (WIN) for Asthma program were featured in an online article of the American Journal of Public Health. The article, "Community Health Workers as Drivers of a Successful Community-Based Disease Management Initiative," points to the importance of community health workers in bridging gaps in care, providing culturally appropriate education and services and connecting families to the best clinical and social resources for those most in need.

Humorous videos to identify possible asthma triggers and help raise the profile of asthma across California and the country.

New asthma videos are available on the American Lung Association's YouTube channel.

A stand-alone learning module that teaches the basics of asthma management, including how to handle asthma episodes and breathing emergencies.

This online toolkit was designed to outline strategies and provide supporting resources to help community advocates as they address asthma policy in housing and school environments.

Smokefree Policies in Multi-Unit Housing: Steps for Success is a free online curriculum designed to give property managers, residents and public health advocates the knowledge and skills they need to enact smokefree air policies in multi-unit housing properties such as apartments and condomiums across the nation.

For the fourth year, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) has released its annual report assessing all 50 states and the District of Columbia on their leadership and progress on school-based policies that address student asthma and allergy health in more than 100,000 elementary, middle and high schools across the U.S. The goal of this report is to identify state-level progress towards better school-based policies, and to provide a blueprint for asthma and allergy advocates nationwide. Does your state make the grade when it comes to school asthma & allergy policies? Full results, including an interactive map, detailed state profiles and charts, are available at www.StateHonorRoll.org For more information contact Liana Burns at liana@aafa.org or 202-466-7643 ext. 252

Pilot Project-EPA Region 4 Asthma Program Contacts (AL, FL, GA, KY, MS,NC.SC,TN) for all programs. go to: http://www.cdc.gov/asthma/contacts/default.htm