Evaluation of Community Action Against Asthma: A Community Health Worker Intervention to Improve Children's Asthma-Related Health by Reducing Household Environmental Triggers for Asthma

This article describes the evaluation of a community-based participatory research (CBPR) community health worker (CHW) intervention to improve children's asthma-related health by reducing household environmental triggers for asthma. After randomization to an intervention or control group, 298 h...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Health education & behavior 2008-06, Vol.35 (3), p.376-395
Main Authors:	Parker, Edith A., Israel, Barbara A., Robins, Thomas G., Mentz, Graciela, Lin, Xihong, Brakefield-Caldwell, Wilma, Ramirez, Erminia, Edgren, Katherine K., Salinas, Maria, Lewis, Toby C.
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Air Pollution, Indoor Asthma Asthma - prevention & control Biological and medical sciences Caregivers Child Children Children & youth Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma Community action Community based action research Community health workers Community Health Workers - organization & administration Community participation Community Participation - methods Cough Cough reflex Drugs Dust Environment Environmental aspects Evaluation Exercise Female General aspects Health Education - methods Health risk assessment Home environment Households Humans Indoor environments Intervention Lungs Male Medical research Medical sciences Mental depression Michigan Miscellaneous Participatory research Pneumology Public health. Hygiene Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine Randomization REGULAR ARTICLES Respiratory function Respiratory Function Tests Risk factors Severity of Illness Index Skin Tests Socioeconomic Factors Symptoms
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Summary:	This article describes the evaluation of a community-based participatory research (CBPR) community health worker (CHW) intervention to improve children's asthma-related health by reducing household environmental triggers for asthma. After randomization to an intervention or control group, 298 households in Detroit, Michigan, with a child, aged 7 to 11, with persistent asthma symptoms participated. The intervention was effective in increasing some of the measures of lung function (daily nadir Forced Expiratory Volume at one second [p = .03] and daily nadir Peak Flow [p = .02]), reducing the frequency of two symptoms ("cough that won't go away," "coughing with exercise"), reducing the proportion of children requiring unscheduled medical visits and reporting inadequate use of asthma controller medication, reducing caregiver report of depressive symptoms, reducing concentrations of dog allergen in the dust, and increasing some behaviors related to reducing indoor environmental triggers. The results suggest a CHW environmental intervention can improve children's asthma-related health, although the pathway for improvement is complex.
ISSN:	1090-1981 1552-6127