New Mexico Alliance for School-Based Health Care / Regional Asthma Management and Prevention: School-Based Health Center Asthma Environmental Intervention Pilot Site

Regional Asthma Management and Prevention (RAMP) is a project of the Public Health Institute working to reduce the burden of asthma through an approach ranging from clinical management to environmental protection. RAMP and the California School-Based Health Alliance have developed tools for School Based Health Centers (SBHCs) interested in asthma environmental interventions — the Asthma Environmental Intervention Guide for School-Based Health Centers (http://www.rampasthma.org/info-resources/ramp-tools-publications/asthma-guide), and case studies (http://www.rampasthma.org/uploads/casestudies.pdf). They also created a national learning collaborative of school-based health centers across the country.

Building on lessons learned through this work, and with a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, RAMP and the New Mexico Alliance for School-Based Health Care are offering a new opportunity to school-based health centers in New Mexico. The scope of work includes:

• Participate in a kick-off dialogue with staff from RAMP.
• Conduct an assessment to determine the extent to which students with asthma served by the School-Based Health Centers (SBHC) are exposed to environmental asthma triggers in their schools, homes, or outdoor environment at the beginning and the end of the learning collaborative. The trigger assessment instrument will be provided by RAMP.
• Develop a work plan and implement one new intervention to reduce exposure to environmental asthma triggers. Examples of interventions in the Asthma Environmental Intervention Guide for SBHCs (http://www.rampasthma.org/uploads/asthma_guide_sbhc.pdf). Note that the Kellogg Foundation prioritizes vulnerable children ages 0-8 and would like to see the activities benefiting this population in some way.
• Conduct evaluation activities to assess the impact of the intervention.
• Participate in technical assistance and peer learning calls, as needed.
• Participate in an interview conducted by RAMP at the end of the intervention period, in which RAMP will assess changes made and lessons learned. If the SBHC is successful at integrating asthma environmental interventions, RAMP would like to develop a case study about the work.

Amount: Three SBHCs will each receive a stipend of $3,000, technical assistance from RAMP, opportunities for peer learning with other SBHCs across the country, and tools and resources to better support the asthma management and prevention needs of students with asthma.

Eligibility: School-based health centers serving students in New Mexico. Selection criteria is as follows:

• The SBHC should be serving student populations in New Mexico with high asthma prevalence and/or asthma disparities
• The SBHC must have participated in training offered on April 18 or be willing to watch a recorded web-based presentation on Asthma Environmental Interventions for School-Based Health Centers
• The SBHC should have some experience with and interest in expanding asthma interventions
• The SBHC should be able to partner with their school administrators to implement school wide projects, as necessary
• The SBHC must identify one SBHC staff member to serve as the point of contact and be responsible for all aspects of the scope of work

Link: http://www.nmasbhc.org/news.html

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