School-based Asthma Management (SAM)

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Contact Information

Judith N. Winford, MSN, RN, CPHQ
School-based Asthma Management
Delta State University
Center for Community and Economic Development
Phone: 662-846-4807
Fax: 662-846-4372
jwinford@deltastate.edu

CLICK HERE to view SAM's latest progress report!

CLICK HERE to view SAM's Summer 2012 newsletter!

Mission
SAM’s objective is to provide effective case management tools to school nurses, connect students and parents to available resources, build capacity with school nurses, coordinate provider services and collect and analyze data on scope and needs for effective asthma management over a five-year period.

Program Description
SAM was established September 2009 by the Mississippi State Department of Health in partnership with the Center for Community and Economic Development at Delta State University.  The Delta area component of SAM supports 77 school nurses in 14 counties and 31 school districts with a combined enrollment of approximately 77,000 students.  There are seven counties in the Delta service area that are designated as priority counties based on asthma rates that exceed the state average.  These counties are Bolivar, Holmes, Humphreys, Leflore, Quitman, Sunflower and Washington.  There are seven additional high risk counties that Delta SAM services:  Carroll, Coahoma, DeSoto, Panola, Tallahatchie, Tate and Tunica.  There are approximately 175 schools in this service area. 

Program Success

SAM has effectively built capacity for school nurses by facilitating the following:
  • Providing capacity building equipment for 77 school nurses (equipment included nebulizers, peak flow meters, nebulizer tubing, asthma resource materials)
  • Sponsored a week long non-residential asthma camp for children with asthma in the Mississippi Delta
  • Sponsored “Air for Energy” parental boot camps to educate parents and Head Start providers on asthma
  • Conduct “Wheezy Bear” sessions to provide students with practical management tips for asthma
  • Facilitated Problem Solving for Better Health Workshops for 10 schools to assist in the development of school-based Asthma Management Policies
  • Develop Affiliation Agreements between school districts and schools of nursing to facilitate the use of school based clinics as clinical rotation sites for RN students
  • Have provided asthma education to over 10K individuals across a 14 county service area
  • Instructor for Certified Asthma Educator Course as sponsored by the American Lung Association – Gulf Plains Region. The course if offered to school nurses and health care professionals in the community
  • Designated as DSU Health Champions

Partners
American Lung Association of MS
Coahoma Community College (Associate Degree Nursing Program)
United Healthcare
MERCK Pharmaceuticals
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals
Avritt Medical Supply

Funders
MS State Department of Health (Funding Source)
Delta Health Alliance

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