Feasibility and benefits of a school‐based academic and counseling program for older school‐age students with asthma

An asthma education program for older school‐age students with asthma was developed in collaboration with school personnel, healthcare professionals, and community partners. Feasibility and benefits were evaluated using a single‐group, prospective, quasi‐experimental design. The convenience sample, consisting of 28 grade 6 and 7 students with asthma, had 50% males, a diverse racial background, and a wide range of incomes. Feasibility and benefits were demonstrated by comparing pre‐intervention to 1‐ and 12‐month post‐intervention evaluation of students who completed more than 70% of the 10 sessions. Statistically significant improvements in cognitive, behavioral, psychosocial, and quality of life outcomes were seen from pre‐intervention to 1‐month post‐intervention (all p  < .03). Severity of asthma significantly improved from 1‐ to 12‐month post‐intervention ( p  = .04). © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Res Nurs Health 35:507–517, 2012