Children`s Asthma is a common chronic disease in children that has no cure but currently there are new approved asthma therapies that help to manage the disease’s symptoms so that patients can live comfortably. According to statistics the disease usually affects children from low-income families and children who live in urban territories. Because of the disease, such children are absent from school and can fall behind their academic process of studying. A novel program called “Building Bridges for Asthma Care” predicts that school nurses will be taught to give help to children suffering from the disease. This project presupposes the collaboration between Colorado Children’s Hospital, Connecticut Children’s MedicalCenter, the public school systems in Hartford and Denver. 2,244 urban children took part in the program.

        “Because children spend much of their time in school, a school nurse is ideally positioned to help. Through the program, school nurses work with children identified with asthma and their families, as well as their primary care providers to address asthma so the child does not miss as much school,” explained Jessica Hollenbach, the author of the program.

       The program included 5 Denver elementary schools and 3 inHartford during the 2013-14 school years. School nurses were taught how to use rescue inhalers in case of progression of the disease. These nurses served as a connection between physicians, caregivers and parents.

        The data on children missing school was collected for the 2012-13 to 2013-14 school years and the study has showed  that it decreased by almost 12 percent. For children with asthma that were not part of this program, absenteeism increased by almost 9 percent.

       “Although we currently only have data from one of the two school districts, this study demonstrates that we can make a difference and help more children with asthma manage their disease and stay in school. This is positive news for everyone involved—children benefit, but also their parents, who do not need to miss work to stay home with their child. The healthcare system benefits too, since their asthma is better managed, and therefore they require fewer health services, such as emergency care or hospitalization,” noted Hollenbach.

http://lungdiseasenews.com/category/asthma/