Children ages 8 to 11 can learn how to better manage their own asthma when they participate in the American Lung Association's award-winning Open Airways For Schools® program (OAS). It is a proven and effective evidence-based program offered to elementary children in the school, community and youth serving organization settings. Watch the video above to learn why it’s important to offer this program in your school or organization from the perspective of children, parents, school health professionals and administrators, and how you can become a facilitator and bring this valuable program to your community.
About Open Airways For Schools
The American Lung Association, federal agencies and other asthma experts all recognize that asthma self-management education is an important part of improving asthma morbidity and mortality among children with asthma. Furthermore, the Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommends school-based asthma self-management interventions to reduce hospitalizations and emergency room visits among children and adolescents with asthma.
Open Airways for Schools® (OAS) is a program that educates and empowers children ages 8 to 11 through a fun and interactive approach to asthma self-management. The program teaches children with asthma how to detect the warning signs of asthma, avoid their triggers and make decisions about their health.
Children who complete OAS can:
- Take steps to prevent asthma symptoms.
- Recognize the symptoms of asthma when they first occur and carry out appropriate management steps.
- Discuss and solve asthma-related problems with parents, medical professionals, teachers and friends.
- Feel more confident about taking care of their asthma daily.
Proven Results
The American Lung Association, the National Asthma Education Prevention Program (NAEPP), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other asthma experts all have recognized that asthma management education is an important part of making schools asthma-friendly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all schools provide asthma education programs for students and school staff.
The program has been recommended by the National Association of School Nurses and honored with a Health Education Research Award from the NAEPP. The CDC recognizes the program as very effective for childhood asthma management.
Open Airways for Schools® is the most widely recognized asthma management program for children in the nation. Since its introduction more than three decades ago, OAS has reached hundreds of thousands of children with asthma in more than 40,000 elementary schools across the country.
OAS has been evaluated and proven effective. Evaluation studies done by different researchers over the years all show that children who participate in OAS:
- Have fewer and less severe asthma flare-ups
- Improve their academic performance
- Have more confidence in their ability to take steps to manage their asthma
- Exert greater influence on their parents’ asthma management decisions
- Because the OAS curriculum and materials are complete, easy-to-use and include standardized training for facilitators, the quality and consistency of the program remains high.
How to Start Your Own OAS Program
The American Lung Association offers a robust training experience and all the materials that adults or organizations need to facilitate OAS. The registration fee is $400 and includes:
Watch this video from an Open Airways For Schools® facilitator on why the program is so important to young asthma sufferers.
Reviewed and approved by the American Lung Association Scientific and Medical Editorial Review Panel.
Page last updated: October 23, 2024
