How Asthma-Friendly is Your School?

Children with
asthma need proper support at school to keep their asthma under
control and be fully active. Use the questions below to find out
how well your school assists children with asthma:

1. Is your school
   free of tobacco smoke all of the time, including during school-sponsored
   events?
2. Does the
   school maintain good indoor air quality? Does it reduce or eliminate
   allergen sand irritants that can make asthma worse? Allergens
   and irritants include pets with fur or feathers, mold, dust mites
   (for example, in carpets and upholstery), cockroaches, and strong
   odors or fumes from such products as pesticides, paint, perfumes,
   and cleaning chemicals.
3. Is there
   a school nurse in your school all day, every day? If not, is a
   nurse regularly available to the school to help write plans and
   give guidance for students with asthma about medicines, physical
   education, and field trips?
4. Can children
   take medicines at school as recommended by their doctor and parents?
   May children carry their own asthma medicines?
5. Does your
   school have an emergency plan for taking care of a child with
   a severe asthma episode (attack)? Is it made clear what to do?
   Who to call? When to call?
6. Does someone
   teach school staff about asthma, asthma management plans, and
   asthma edicines? Does someone teach all students about asthma
   and how to help a classmate ho has it?
7. Do students
   have good options for fully and safely participating in physical
   education lass and recess? (For example, do students have access
   to their medicine before exercise? Can they choose modified or
   alternative activities when medically necessary?) If the answer
   to any question is no, students may be facing obstacles to asthma
   control. Asthma out of control can hinder a student’s attendance,
   participation, and progress in school. School staff, health professionals,
   and parents can work together to remove obstacles and to promote
   students’ health and education.

Contact these
organizations for information about asthma and helpful ideas for
making school policies and practices more asthma-friendly. Federal
and State laws are there to help children with asthma.

Resource
Organizations for Parents and School Staff

National Asthma Education and Prevention Program
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Information Center,

P.O. Box 30105, Bethesda, MD 20824-0105
(301) 251-1222
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/nhlbi/nhlbi.htm

NAEPP materials include:

• Managing
  Asthma: A Guide for Schools
• Asthma
  Awareness Curriculum for the Elementary Classroom
• Asthma
  and Physical Activity in the School
• Making
  a Difference: Asthma Management in the School (video)
• Your
  Students With Asthma Can Be Winners, Too! (poster)

Allergy and
Asthma Network/Mothers of Asthmatics, Inc.
Suite 200, 3554 Chain Bridge Road, Fairfax, VA
22030-4403 (800) 878-4403 or (703) 385-4403
http://www.aanma.org/

American
Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology
611 East Wells Street, Milwaukee, WI 53202
(800) 822-ASTHMA or (414) 272-6071
http://www.aaaai.org/

American
Academy of Pediatrics
141 Northwest Point Boulevard, Elk Grove Village, IL 60007
(800) 433-9016
http://www.aap.org/

American
Association for Respiratory Care
11030 Ables Lane, Dallas, TX 75229-4593
(972) 243-2272
http://www.aarc.org

American
College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology
85 West Algonquin Road, Suite 550
Arlington Heights, IL 60005
(800) 842-7777 or (847) 427-1200
http://allergy.mcg.edu

American
Lung Association
For the affiliate nearest you, call (800)LUNG USA
http://www.lungusa.org/

Asthma and
Allergy Foundation of America
Suite 502, 1125 15th Street, N.W.,Washington, DC 20005
(800) 7-ASTHMA or (202) 466-7643
http://www.aafa.org/

Healthy Kids:
The Key to Basics
Educational Planning for Students With Asthma and Other Chronic
Health Conditions
79 Elmore Street, Newton, MA 02159-1137
(617) 965-9637

U.S. Department
of Education Office for Civil Rights, Customer Service
Team, Mary E. Switzer Building, 330 CStreet, S.W., Washington,
DC 20202-1328
(800) 421-3481 or (202) 205-5413
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCR/

U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency Indoor
Environments Division, 401 M Street, S.W. (6604J), Washington,
DC 20460
(202) 233-9370

Indoor Air
Quality Information Clearinghouse
800) 438-4318
http://www.epa.gov/iaq/

Special thanks
to members of and consultants to the NAEPP School Asthma Education
Subcommittee, representing the following organizations, for their
contributions in developing this document: Allergy and Asthma
Network/Mothers of Asthmatics, Inc.; American Academy of Allergy,
Asthma,and Immunology; American Academy of Pediatrics; American
Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance;
American Association for Respiratory Care; American Lung Association;
American Medical Association; American Public Health Association;
American School Health Association; Asthma and Allergy Foundation
of America; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Healthy
Kids: The Key to Basics; National Association of Elementary School
Principals; National Association of School Nurses; National Education
Association Health Information Network; National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences; National School Boards Association;
and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.