Implementation Guide

As part of a comprehensive asthma management program, home visits can provide people with asthma an extra level of support and can contribute to the success and sustainability of a health plan’s asthma disease management program. EPA's new guide, Implementing An Asthma Home Visit Program: 10 Steps To Help Health Plans Get Started, offers step-by-step instructions on how to start an asthma home visit program with a particular emphasis on environmental risk factor management.

This Environmental Stewardship Guide is published to provide the CMS community information and insights on the CMS environmental footprint.  It includes examples of the district's environmental performance and offers examples of the efforts you can make to foster stewardship action in your own activities at home, school, and work.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education formalized the CMS commitment to environmental stewardship in Board Policy ECF, "Environmental Stewardship" (p. 2).  The Superintendent has furthered this commitment by including environmental stewardship in the internationally recognized ISO 14001 standard and is tailored to have environmental stewardship integrated into the everyday business of the district (p. 4). 

Environmental Stewardship requires the wide-ranging engagement of staff, students and the community.  The district's goals to reduce utility consumption and pollution by 20%, and solid waste by 5% by June 2014 are possible through your input, participation and leadership.  The snapshot below illustrates the magnitude of the district's environmental footprint.  

Managing Asthma in the School Environment focuses on steps that schools can take to help children breathe easier. Students with uncontrolled asthma often miss more school and have poorer academic performance than healthy students. With the help of strong school management programs, students with asthma can have equally good school attendance. When asthma is well controlled, students are ready to learn. Because children spend most of their time in schools, day care facilities, or at home, it is important to reduce their exposure to environmental asthma triggers as much as possible in each of these environments.

The guide offers valuable information for all school staff, especially school nurses, teachers, and maintenance staff, on how to establish and evaluate an indoor air quality management program, develop an asthma management plan, and reduce environmental asthma triggers.