Asthma Prevalence and Management in Jackson County Schools

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Asthma Prevalence and Management in Jackson
County Schools

• By
• Janet Followell, Stella Iwuagwu, Kim Sanders,
  and Michael Stroud

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Prevalence of Asthma

• 4.4 million children in U.S. affected by asthma
• Most common cause of absenteeism due to chronic
  illness
• One out of 15 students in the classroom will have
  an asthma attack
• (ALA, 2003)

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Purpose of the Study

• Determine the prevalence and management of asthma
  among children in Jackson County Schools

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Research Questions

• What is the prevalence of asthma among school age
  children in Jackson County?
• What services, assistance, and resources are
  needed by the schools in order to serve children
  with asthma?

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Methodology

• Mailed 26 surveys
• Prevalence and management of asthma
• Needs assessment
• Quantitative and qualitative

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n 15
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Instrumentation

• Instrument was developed by developed and revised
  by Jackson County Health Department

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Data Analysis

• Descriptive statistics, including frequencies,
  percentages, and means
• Themes developed from answers to open ended
  questions

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Asthmatic Students
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Asthma Medications
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Asthma Awareness
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School Nurses
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Smoke Free
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(No Transcript)
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Qualitative Themes

• Increase parental, student, and staff
  awareness/asthma education
• Full time nurse in schools
• Address air quality, ventilation, and cleaning of
  facility
• Peak flow meters utilized
• CPR training of staff

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Total Staff 638
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Conclusions

• Asthma training of parents, students, and staff
• Majority of schools currently lack full time
  nurse
• Concerns expressed regarding air quality and
  cleanliness
• Small percentage of staff trained in CPR

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Limitations

• Generalizability secondary to poor return/cutoff
  date.
• Self-reporting bias
• Limitation secondary to medical terms and
  language in survey

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Recommendations

• Asthma training for staff, students, and parents
• Increase staff trained in CPR
• Increase presence of school nurse
• Address air quality and cleanliness concerns