Observational StudyChicago Asthma School-Directed Child-Centered Assessment and Dissemination of Evidence

Children will be recruited from two University of Chicago Charter elementary schools. Children with a diagnosis of asthma and their parents will be eligible for inclusion in the study and will specifically be targeted for study recruitment. Staff and administrators at each school will also be recruited through in-person, phone, and email communication, primarily through word of mouth and professional development days. UCCS teachers, staff, and administrators will also be included in the program evaluation and we will obtain appropriate consent.

Up to 400 families with a child/children with asthma from two UCCS schools will be added to a registry database. A total of 68 children with a diagnosis of asthma and their parents will be recruited for evaluation of the multi-component program, resulting in a total of 136 children and parents. We will also recruit 24 teachers, staff, and administrators across the two schools to participate in the evaluation of the overall program.

The intervention is a multi-component program that includes in-depth training for current school teachers/staff who are critical in asthma care, restructured processes to identify students with asthma, technological adaptations to support integrated systems for asthma care and absenteeism, strategies to enhance communication about asthma within school and between school and home, protocols for routine care (e.g., participation in gym/recess) and emergencies, and education for all students about asthma.