Community

The Asthma Outreach Worker can:

• Help you understand the advice provided by your doctor.
  Sometimes the information you receive in your doctor's office or at the hospital can seem confusing. Our Asthma Outreach Worker will work with you, and if necessary, with your child's doctor to make sure you understand your doctor's advice.
• Help to develop an asthma management plan.
  Health experts and physicians all recommend that people with asthma have a plan in place that clearly states what should be done, when it should be done and how it should be done. If you already have an asthma management plan our Asthma Outreach Worker will help you understand it and update it with you if necessary. If you don't have a plan, she will work with you to put one in place.
• Conduct a Home environmental assessment.
  Besides taking the right medications, people with asthma and allergies usually need to avoid certain things in the environment that can make them ill. Our Asthma Outreach Worker will share information about things in and around your home that may be making you sick. She'll also provide simple suggestions on ways to reduce your exposure to the environmental "triggers" most likely to affect your asthma.
• Provide supplies to assist you with your asthma management.
  You may also need supplies such as a peak flow meter or spacer to help manage your asthma or to help you reduce your exposure to environmental "triggers." The Asthma Outreach Worker can often provide these supplies at no cost to you.

The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease, through research, education and advocacy. Our work is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; champion clean air for all; improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families; and create a tobacco-free future. The American Lung Association is a charity built on trust and transparency, and is a proud holder of the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Guide Seal, a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, a Gold Star rating from GuideStar and membership in the National Health Council.

Rex Hospital asthma staff will assist WCPSS (Wake County Public Schools) in achieving the following five goals for school health developed by the National Asthma Education Prevention Program: 1) A Healthy school environment 2) Health Services in the School 3) Asthma Education 4) Supportive Policies and 5) Sound Communication. The program will also assist in the collection of data to determine if the program helps the children understand their asthma management as well as affect the increase and/or decrease of symptoms during the day and at night, daily activity limitations, and frequency of severe attacks. We will also collaborate with the school system to record the number of days missed due to an excused absence, number of hospitalizations, and any changes in the medication usage for each child. _We will also measure satisfaction and compliance with a simple questionnaire sent home with each child three months after completing the class. ____________________ All children who particpate in the WE CAN asthma education project will receive free education and tools to manage their asthma, such as peak flow meters and spacers. Education will be made available to their parents
• Children attend seven educational sessions where they learn about asthma and how to take control of asthma. Sessions are conducted before or after school, or during recess periods so that the child does not miss class. Instructors use the Starbright “Quest for the Code” CD ROM game, played as a group and individually by each child. Quest for the Code was developed with the input of an advisory team of national pediatric asthma experts, including physicians at UCLA and UC Irvine, researchers, nurses and educators.8 Quest for the Code features 3-D animation and the voices of eleven top celebrities to help kids ages 7 to 15 learn how to manage their asthma. Each CD-ROM contains the game in both English and Spanish and includes a comprehensive parent guide. The Starbright celebrities include Minnie Driver, Whoopi Goldberg, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Shaquille O’Neal.
• Before the first session, parents are asked to complete an asthma assessment for their child. This assessment is used by the WE CAN facilitators to assess the severity of asthma and needs of each family. Parents are invited to the first session and asked to sign a permission slip and a contract for a smoke free home.
• Parents receive a Starbright Quest for the Code Parent Guide and One Minute Asthma book.
• Each week parents are sent sheets explaining what their child has learned, reference pages to review with their child, and quizzes for the parent and child to take together. Parents also help the child complete a peak flow diary, which helps them monitor the child’s progress.
Each child is also provided a Peak Flow Meter, PEF diary, Spacer and pillow cover and education on the appropriate use of each device. The sessions and distribution of devices and additional educational materials closely follow the seven modules included on the Starbright program