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Easy Breathing |
Easy Breathing II
Easy Breathing© is designed to encourage comprehensive
asthma management by pediatric providers, patients, and
parents with the goals of improving the health status of
children with asthma and reducing medical care expenditures.
The program began in 1998 as a cooperative venture between
the University of Connecticut Health Center and the Patrick
and Catherine Weldon Donaghue Medical Research Foundation
with the support and participation of Connecticut Children's
Medical Center, the Connecticut State Health Department and
Department of Social Services, the City of Hartford Health
Department, St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center, managed
care organizations including Anthem / Blue Cross Blue
Shield, pharmaceutical companies including GlaxoSmithKline,
and community organizations including the Hispanic Health
Council and the Urban League of Greater Hartford.
Goals of Easy Breathing©
Easy Breathing© is an asthma recognition and management
program that is implemented by the primary care provider.
The goals of Easy Breathing© are to:
- Improve health outcomes for children with asthma
- Reduce inappropriate use of emergency rooms and
hospitals
- Decrease direct and indirect costs for asthma care
The overall goal of Easy Breathing© is to help primary
care providers provide quality asthma care and education to
children with asthma.
The specific aims of Easy Breathing© are to:
1. Improve asthma recognition by primary care providers
Easy Breathing© uses a validated, linguistically- and
educationally-appropriate survey that is administered to all
parents or guardians of children, aged 6 months through 17
years, who receive their medical care at participating Easy
Breathing© clinics and private practices. The provider
reviews the questionnaire and then determines whether the
child's history, coupled with the physical examination and
other corroborating data, are compatible with a clinical
diagnosis of asthma.
2. Assist primary care providers in determining asthma
severity and in developing asthma treatment plans based on
the 1997 NAEPP Guidelines
This aspect of the program seeks to aid primary care
providers in determining asthma severity and institution of
appropriate anti-inflammatory therapy in children with
asthma, utilizing the Guidelines and a series of algorithms
and questions. Providers ask parents or guardians of
children with asthma a series of scripted questions about
frequency and severity of asthma symptoms, hospitalizations
and emergency room visits for asthma, and medication usage
including oral steroids and inhaled bronchodilators. Their
responses are used to determine asthma severity.
Once asthma severity is determined, providers use a
medication treatment selection guide to prescribe therapy
appropriate for asthma of that severity. Choices for asthma
of all severity are provided as well as information about
health insurance coverage for specific drugs. The guide
prompts providers in developing a daily, sick, and emergency
asthma treatment plan for each child.
Providers then produce a written asthma treatment plan for
each child. This treatment plan consists of a standardized
form that is tailored for each child and contains a daily,
sick, and emergency treatment plan. This document is given
to every child and a copy is retained for the practitioner.
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