Achievement of Guidelines-Based Medical Management
The Lung Association is partnering with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services to deliver our asthma quality improvement program, Enhancing Care for Children with Asthma. The purpose of the quality improvement program is to improve the reach, quality, effectiveness, and sustainability of asthma control services and to reduce asthma morbidity, mortality, and disparities by implementing an asthma quality improvement program in health care clinics. The program’s activities align with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) initiative, Controlling Childhood Asthma Reducing Emergencies (CCARE), EXHALE Technical Package, and 6|18 Initiative related to asthma control. They are designed to improve childhood asthma outcomes and prevent childhood hospitalizations and emergency department visits. Additionally, the quality improvement program works to strengthen systems to support guidelines-based medical care, increase patient and caregiver knowledge about asthma self-management practices, increase linkages for coordinated care, and increase adoption and adherence to evidence-based practices and policies supportive of asthma control.
Who to contact…?
To learn more about our partnership with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services and to see how to bring this important initiative to your organization, please email [email protected].
What is EXHALE?
What is EXHALE?
Education on Asthma Self-Management
- Expanding access to and delivery of asthma self-management education (AS-ME)
What we are doing:
American Lung Association provides training on asthma self-management education (AS-ME) by preparing a workforce of healthcare professionals to educate adults, children, and families in asthma. The Lung Association provides professional development education courses, such as Asthma Basics and the Asthma Educator Institute. Also, the Lung Association prepares school nurses, school personnel and community health educators to facilitate asthma programs for elementary-aged children, adolescents, and adults using American Lung Association evidenced-based programs that include Open Airways For Schools®, Kickin’ Asthma, and Breathe Well, Live Well®.
X-tinguishing smoking and secondhand smoke
- Reducing smoking and the use of other tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, cigars and smokeless tobacco
- Reducing exposure to secondhand smoke
What we are doing:
The American Lung Association is committed to helping educate , intervene, and prevent the use of tobacco and nicotine by the next generation. The Lung Association is the leading organization working to prevent youth tobacco use, eliminate exposure to secondhand smoke and help all tobacco users end their addition through quitting. Our work in these areas is accomplished by:
- Preparing a workforce of healthcare professionals to facilitate evidenced-based programs (Freedom From Smoking & Not-on Tobacco Facilitator Trainings)
- Providing evidence-based smoking cessation programs for teens who want to quit tobacco.
- Supporting and expanding the number of tobacco/nicotine free communities
- Reducing tobacco products through public policy
Home visits for trigger reduction and asthma self-management education
- Expanding access to and delivery of home visits (as needed) for asthma trigger reduction and AS-ME
What we are doing:
The American Lung Association focuses on increasing the coverage of home visits for trigger reduction and asthma self-management education (AS-ME) by promoting evidenced-based programs and strategies.
- Environmental Improvement for Children’s Asthma Project
- Educating decision makers about Medicaid coverage of home visits through the Asthma Care Coverage project
- Infographic: Controlling Air Pollutants in Multi-Unit Housing
- Asthma and Environmental Triggers Resources
Achievement of guidelines-based medical management
- Strengthening systems supporting guidelines-based medical care, including appropriate prescribing and use of inhaled corticosteroids
- Improving access and adherence to asthma medications and devices
What we are doing:
Achieving widespread guidelines-based medical care management can improve health outcomes and quality of life for people living with asthma. It can improve medicine adherence, reduce asthma-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits, reduce healthcare costs from fewer hospitalizations and emergency department visits, as well as reduce the number missed work and school days due to asthma symptoms. At the Lung Association we work towards the widespread adoption of guidelines-based care through:
- Strengthening systems that support guidelines-based medical care using Clinical Quality Improvement initiatives
- Preparing a workforce of healthcare professionals using the Asthma Educator Institute and Spirometry Training: Implementation and Interpretation of Spirometry in the Primary Care Practice
- Educating clinicians and educators on the NHLBI Asthma Clinical Guidelines 2020 Focused Update
- Educating decision makers about Medicaid coverage of asthma guidelines-based care using the American Lung Association’s Asthma Care Coverage project
Linkages and coordination of care across settings
- Promoting coordinated care for people with asthma
What we are doing:
Successful promotion and implementation of coordinated care for people living with asthma can help improve asthma control and reduce healthcare costs. At the Lung Association we promote expanding coordinated care for people living with asthma through our work on:
- Clinical Quality Improvement initiatives to strengthen health systems
- Partnerships with health systems (e.g., Children’s Hospitals, Federally Qualified Health Centers, School-Based Health Centers)
- Individualized or customized approaches to meet the needs of the partner or the community
Environmental policies or best practices to reduce asthma triggers from indoor, outdoor, and occupational sources
- Facilitating home energy efficiency, including home weatherization assistance programs
- Facilitating smoke free policies
- Facilitating clean diesel school buses
- Eliminating exposure to asthma triggers in the workplace whenever possible
- Reducing exposure to asthma triggers in the workplace (if eliminating exposures is not possible)
What we are doing:
People spend most of their times indoors and much of this time is spent at home. Avoiding and removing asthma triggers from indoor, outdoor, and occupational spaces is a key step to preventing symptoms. By removing asthma triggers air quality can be improved, while reducing symptoms in children and adults. Additionally, this step has been proven to decrease hospitalizations, emergency department visits, and the use of rescue medicine. At the Lung Association we work to help establish and expend environmental policies and best practices to reduce asthma triggers through:
- Educating and helping communities establish smokefree policies
- Collaborating with schools to implement a comprehensive asthma plan using the Asthma-Friendly Schools Initiative and end the epidemic to e-cigarettes with Vape Free Schools Initiative, and
- Educating employers to improve exposure to asthma triggers in the workplace using resources such as – “Create an Asthma-Friendly Work Environment”; infographic: “How Lung Friendly is Your Workplace?”
Page last updated: May 14, 2024
