N.J. school district earns 'asthma-friendly' status
New Jersey school district has been working to improve asthma awareness and lessen asthma triggers for students.
Thu, Nov 03 2011 at 8:00 AM EST
Photo: Woodbury City Public Schools
New Jersey's Woodbury City public school district received a unique honor this week. The district earned an “asthma-friendly” designation by The Pediatric/Adult Asthma Coalition of New Jersey (PACNJ) for its efforts to improve asthma awareness and reduce asthma triggers in its schools.
The coalition, sponsored by the American Lung Association, applauded the school district's efforts to lessen emergency room visits for kids with asthma. To receive the designation, each of the schools had to meet these requirements:
- Each school must have a nebulizer, a device for producing a fine spray of liquid.
- School nurses must complete asthma management training and conduct in-service training programs for each teacher within the school.
- School nurses and district facility employees must also attend an indoor air quality training session.
- Asthmatic students at each school must be permitted to carry their inhalers at school.
- The district superintendent must sign a no-idling pledge to reduce school bus emissions.
Almost a quarter of a million children, or about 10 percent of children in New Jersey, have asthma. Hopefully, this designation, and the schools that are working to achieve it, will help students and their parents breathe a little easier each day.
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