title: Establishing school-centered asthma programs.
abstract: Asthma is a common chronic childhood disease associated with significant morbidity and high rates of school absenteeism, along with excessive costs for the patient and society. Asthma is a leading cause of school absenteeism, but this absenteeism is not equally distributed among those with asthma. Second to their home, school-aged children spend the largest portion of their wakeful hours at school. Opportunities exist to partner with schools to reach most children with asthma and those at the highest risk for asthma burden and in need of assistance. Asthma management at schools is important for pediatric pulmonologists and allergists, primary care providers, and the whole interdisciplinary team working alongside them to provide quality asthma care. The variability of asthma care services and programs provided in schools should prompt clinicians to understand their own school system and to advocate for appropriate services. Models of asthma care that place schools at the center or core of the model and coordinate evidence-based asthma care are applicable nationwide and might serve as a model for managing other chronic illnesses.
authors.affiliation: Community Outreach and Research, National Jewish Health, and the Clinical Science Program, University of Colorado Denver AMC, Denver, Colo.
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cicutto
authors.affiliation: Building Bridges Asthma Program, Children's Hospital of Colorado, and the Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colo.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gleason
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Asthma Research Program, Breathing Institute, Section of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Children's Hospital Colorado, and the Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine, Aurora, Colo. Electronic address: stanley.szefler@childrenscolorado.org.
authors.forename: Stanley J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Szefler
mesh_terms: D001249:Asthma / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D012572:School Health Services; D012648:Self Care; D013334:Students
keywords: Asthma; asthma prevalence; asthma statistics; childhood asthma; school-centered asthma programs; schools