Abstract
Background
Kaiser Permanente medical centers have been teaching school-age asthmatic children how to manage asthma at home, but the program fails when the children are at school because teachers, school nurses, principals, and physical education coaches have not been trained to allow the children to properly manage asthma at school. This expensive problem, which exists at all grade levels, could be corrected if school personnel understood asthma and what teacher and child must do to manage it.
Materials & Methods
In 1993 we adapted the American Association of Respiratory Care program, Peak Performance USA, to our health maintenance organization setting. The program package included donated peak flow meters, spacers, and literature. We implemented an asthma education management training program for 180 school personnel in 2 districts; school personnel in other districts served as controls.
Results
Results of postprogram evaluation showed, despite a low response rate, that school personnel learned from the program and that learning was retained when either a 2-hour or a 3-hour class format was used. Classes were so well received that additional districts asked to receive the training, which we provided. Another result of the program was the referral of parents to asthma management classes.
Conclusions
Education about the nature of asthma, how to treat it, and the use of peak flow meters and spacers allowed school personnel to better understand and manage asthma, although California state restrictions on use of teachers' time limited our program's success.
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