“Physicians of Prevention”

On Tuesday, April 10th, I had the opportunity to attend the West Virginia School Based Health Assembly Annual Meeting at Coonskin Park. It was a wonderful meeting bringing together statewide healthcare advocates and partners to discuss the status and success of school-based health centers. For those that may not be familiar, the West Virginia School-Based Health Assembly (WVSBHA) aims to advance comprehensive health care in school settings through responsive policies, practices, and partnerships. The assembly serves 80 schools in 28 counties at 67 school-based health clinics. The WVAC is a proud partner of the WVSBHA – working together to promote the health and wellness of children of all ages and backgrounds.

At this meeting I heard from several state supporters regarding stories of success and challenges that have been overcome. One presenter, however, stood out to me when she made one simple statement. Her name was Dr. Jorea Marple and she is the State Superintendent of Schools for the West Virginia Department of Education and the simple words that she said were, “I think it is now time that we all are physicians of prevention and that wellness of our children becomes a moral imperative for our community.”

What a wonderful thought – that we are all “physicians of prevention”. It does not matter what your educational background is or with what company, school, non-profit, etc. that you work for – now is the time that we all must become physicians. We must become physicians of prevention and we must work together to prevent childhood diseases. Dr. Marple also stated in her address that in a recent article published by the Gazette that they determined that 30% of our fifth graders are obese and that 25% suffer from high blood pressure and high cholesterol. These are startling numbers for children that should have bright futures but are now facing serious health consequences.

So what does this mean for the WVAC? Well, it means that we must all put on our white lab coats and start working on prevention. As a Coalition, we can begin working as physicians of prevention for these children. While she did not provide any specific statistics on children with asthma in West Virginia, we already know the following statistics for our children:

• Approximately 13% or 47,000 West Virginians under the age of 18 have at some point been diagnosed with asthma by a health care professional.
• It was estimated that in 2009, 8.5% or 32,000 West Virginia children had asthma.
• Approximately 60% of children under the age of 18 and 43% of public high school students with asthma had an asthma attack in the past 12 months.
• Twenty percent of public high school students with asthma missed school due to asthma during the 2008-2009 school year.
• Children under the age of 15 accounted for 22% of asthma hospitalizations in 2008 (WV-AEPP Fact Sheet).

So, how can we be a physician of prevention for a disease that attacks the airways? There are many things that we can do to help, and here are a few:

• Encourage those with asthma to make frequent visits to the doctor concerning this condition – this is the best way to begin a prevention plan to start breathing easier.
• Encourage asthma action plans! Everyone with asthma should have a plan – monitoring asthma is the best way to minimize asthma episodes and to help the patient be in control of his or her asthma.
• Know the asthma triggers. Study up on the things that can trigger an episode – strong smells, grass, pollen, etc. Once the patient understands the triggers, management can become much easier.
• Do you know your body and your breathing patterns? Encourage the individual with asthma to record breathing patterns around the time of an asthma episode. Once these patterns are tracked a better plan of action can be implemented to prevent the episode.
• Medicine is key! Asthma medications should never be skipped or missed in order to help clear the airways. Continued use of a quick-relief inhaler is not normal – this means that the asthma is not under control and that a long-term medication might be more sufficient. (Mayo Clinic, 2012).

So, these are some great tips to get you started in becoming a physician of prevention with those that you know that have asthma, or even with those that you do not know. Encourage your child’s school to look at indoor air quality standards (regardless of whether your child has asthma or not), find some credible articles or information to deliver to the neighbor child that struggles with his or her breathing in the spring, etc. Take steps to prevent someone from suffering through an asthma episode. There is no better time to become a physician of prevention than now.

Exercise-Induced Asthma

This weekend I am venturing to Charleston, South Carolina to participate in my first-ever 10k race. I will be running in one of the largest 10k races on the east coast, with over 40,000 participants. As a former college athlete, I have experienced my bouts of exercise-induced asthma – having received my first rescue inhaler when I was in high school. This came in handy over the years as I experienced asthma episodes during weather changes and other environmental changes as a runner.

I just received my copy of Allergic Living (Spring 2012), which includes a section called ”Ask the Allergy & Asthma Expert” with Dr. Clifford Bassett. In this section a reader asked the following question regarding exercise-induced asthma, and I thought that Dr. Bassett’s response was worth sharing as I prepare for my weekend race.

Q: ”I’m a marathon runner in my 40s. I’ve been diagnosed with exercise-induced asthma. What can you tell me about it?”

A: “Exercise-induced asthma is a narrowing of the airways in the lungs that is provoked by exercise. The most common complaints include cough and shortness of breath after six to 15 minutes of exercise.

The good news is that even those with asthma may compete at an Olympic level. In the past several Olympic Games, one in 10 American athletes had exercise-induced asthma. In my own practice, among elite and competitive athletes, having the endurance to exercise comfortably is doable with proper planning, training, and, of course, common sense.

It is essential to have your asthma (and often underlying allergies) under good control by taking the appropriate medications and to be under the supervision of an asthma specialist. In some cases, brief periods of rest may be necessary, as well as taking prescribed rescue medication prior to running. A proper warm-up with light exercise and stretching is essential, and cool down activities after exercise are often helpful.” – Dr. Clifford Bassett (Allergic Living, Spring 2012)

This is great advice as I prepare for my 10k, and I hope that it will be equally helpful for anyone that has exercise-induced asthma. I think the key message in his answer is, “having the endurance to exercise comfortably is doable with proper planning, training, and, of course, common sense.” It is important to be prepared with your medications, to know that an episode could present itself, and to know the proper steps to prevent an asthma attack.

Happy Holidays..and Thank You!

As we approach the end of another successful year for the West Virginia Asthma Coalition, I want to take the time to thank all of our Coalition members, subcommittee chairs, our Executive Committee, and the other numerous volunteers and coworkers that help make this Coalition a success. As you learned from our last blog post, there are quite a mix of individuals that make this all possible – from the CDC, to the West Virginia Asthma Education and Prevention Program, and more. We certainly could not be capping off another year without each of you. We have great hopes for the future of our program as we move forward into 2012.

As we approach a time where we reflect on things gone by in 2011 and focus on the hopes of 2012, I am pleased to say that the WV Asthma Coalition has reached great heights. Our subcommittees have worked endlessly on developing new project proposals for 2012, and in reviewing initial ideas and outlines, I am excited to see the new avenues that we will begin to explore together. Taking current ideas and embracing new initiatives is a feat I see taking place in all of our subcommittee efforts, and I look forward to the outcomes.

As we face a new year of asthma challenges, I know that we are armed with a wonderful group of individuals that are committed to education and prevention for senior citizens, students, and individuals of all ages, races, and backgrounds — because together we are ”helping West Virginians with asthma breathe easier”.  Thank you to those that serve as part of this wonderful Coalition and Happy Holidays to you and yours.

 

 

 

Understanding the WV Asthma Coalition

It has often been discussed that the roots of the West Virginia Asthma Coalition are difficult to understand, and as the West Virginia Asthma Coalition manager, I would have certainly agreed when I first took on this role. There are several different organizations that all work together to bring this Coalition to life, but how they all play into that can be somewhat complicated. As a follower of our social media, you have probably noticed that there are posts related to the Centers for Disease Control, the West Virginia Asthma Education and Prevention Program, and the American Lung Association in West Virginia, and you might have wondered how all of these organizations relate to what we do as a Coalition. Furthermore, at events, meetings, or on flyers, and notifications you might have seen logos for these organizations and wondered what they have to do with our efforts. Today I have decided that I am going to take an informal approach at explaining this relationship to you.

The West Virginia Asthma Education and Prevention Program (WV-AEPP) was created by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (WVDHHR) through a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).The WV-AEPP then provides funding to several other organizations in the area to help develop, implement, and evaluate a statewide strategic asthma plan in the ultimate interest of reducing the health and economic consequences attributed to asthma in West Virginia. One of those organizations that the WV-AEPP assists with funding is the American Lung Association in West Virginia (ALA-WV). Through a subcontract with the WV-AEPP, the ALA-WV manages the West Virginia Asthma Coalition.

For a better understanding of how this works, I developed a flow chart to explain the connection of all these organizations.

Along with this partnership, the Coalition is a diverse group of organizations and over 80 individuals that continue to branch the goals and work of all these organizations, from the top down.

Therefore, when you see representatives from the WV-AEPP or the ALA-WV at events representing the Coalition, this is where the connection stems from. Or, when you receive information from the ALA-WV or see postings on the social media sites from one of these organizations, it is an entire team of individuals working together to support the success of the Coalition.

Faces of Influenza

The influenza disease is more than just a common cold; it is a serious respiratory illness. Nationwide, influenza and its complications cause an average of 26,000 deaths and approximately 226,000 hospitalizations each year. These victims and thousands more are the “faces” of influenza – people recommended for annual immunization by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

To help prevent influenza from spreading and to encourage influenza immunization, the American Lung Association brings Faces of Influenza, a national educational campaign, to West Virginia. This multi-year public awareness initiative helps Americans put a “face” on this serious disease and recognize annual influenza immunization as an important preventative measure to protect themselves and their loved ones.

To learn more about the Faces of Influenza campaign and to locate a flu shot clinic near you visit www.facesofinfluenza.org. Also, check out this interview with Faces of Influenza spokesperson and Olympic Gold Medalist, Kristi Yamaguchi: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/10/13/kristi-yamaguchi-urges-public-to-get-annual-flu-shot/

2011 Fall Quarterly Meeting

Fall is in the air, and so is the first Quarterly Meeting for the West Virginia Asthma Coalition. The first Quarterly Meeting of the new activity year will be taking place at Mon General Hospital in Morgantown, WV on November 8th. The meeting will take place from 11:00am-3:30pm and will include a working lunch for subcommittee project planning.

The Coalition is excited to be hosting guest speakers, Jeff Neccuzi of the Division of Immunization Services, Chaste Barclay of the American Lung Association in West Virginia, and Stephanie Moore of the Division of Health Promotion and Chronic Disease. Topics such as influenza, whooping cough, program development, and the future of asthma with chronic disease will be covered.

For more information about the Fall Quarterly Meeting, or to RSVP, please contact Coalition Manager, Lindsay Elkins at 304-342-6600 or lelkins@lunginfo.org.

REVISED 2011-2012 Calendar

There have already been a few changes registered for the 2011-2012 activity calendar. These changes include the following:

Tuesday, November 8th: Fall Quarterly Meeting, Mon General Hospital, Morgantown

Wednesday, January 25: Asthma & COPD Awareness Day at the Capitol

For a complete list of all activities, please visit: http://www.wvasthma.org/Portals/4/2011-2012%20Calendar%20(2).pdf

We look forward to seeing you at a meeting or activity soon!