Recorded presentation

Judith DePue, EdD, MPH, Center for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine, Miriam Hospital/Brown Medical School, One Hoppin St. - CORO West, 5th floor, Providence, RI 02903, 401-793-8140, JDePue@Lifespan.org, Catherine Mansell, MS, Environmental Studies Dept., Brown University, Box ES, Providence, RI 02906, Elizabeth McQuaid, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Rhode Island Hospital/Brown Medical School, One Hoppin St., CORO West,-2, Providence, RI 02903, Robert B. Klein, MD, Department of Pediatrics, Rhode Island Hospital/Brown Medical School, 593 Eddy St., Providence, RI 02903, Christopher Camillo, BA, Department of Pediatrics, Rhode Island Hospital, 593 Eddy St., Providence, RI 02903, and Anthony Alario, MD, Department of Pediatrics, Brown University, Box G-RIH, Providence, RI 02912.

BACKGROUND: The Providence School Asthma Partnership is conducted in 25 Providence RI elementary schools, providing important asthma education to families in inner city communities where asthma rates and effects are highest. METHODS: Parents attended a 2-hour after-school workshop in English or Spanish at their child’s school, while children attended a workshop at their age level. Support groups were offered to follow workshop. A split sample compared outcomes for children with mild vs. moderate/severe persistent asthma on repeated measures ANOVA in 2 consecutive school years to test replication of findings. Outcomes were asthma related hospital days (HD), emergency room (ER) visits, and school-days missed (SD), all comparing parent reports on past year at baseline and 12-month follow-up. RESULTS: In 2 years 416 and 321 unique families participated, respectively. Parents: 76% Hispanic, 57% English-speaking; children: 58% male, mean age 8, 57% mod/severe asthma. 12-month follow-up rates were 61% and 62% in 2 years, respectively. As expected, children with more severe asthma had higher baseline levels on all indicators in both years, with significantly greater changes across time found on HD, ER & SD, in 1st year and on HD & ER in 2nd year (all p’s < .01). Children at both asthma levels significantly reduced ER & SD in both years. For the 433 children with follow-up data, there were 164 fewer HDs, 468 fewer ER visits, 1,400 fewer SD missed. CONCLUSIONS: A school-based family-centered asthma program can significantly improve school days missed and healthcare utilization for inner city minority children.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• Describe 3 program features that were important for developing the partnership between school- and hospital-based professionals.
• List 3 steps important for recruiting families to school-based workshops.
• List 3 program features used to address cultural competency for target communities
• Identify 3 asthma education learning objectives for parents, based on NIH guidelines.
• Describe how program outcomes can be used for sustainability planning

Keywords: Underserved Populations, School-Based Programs

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Recorded presentation