Leading the Way: Asthma Management Programs in Boston
1. Leading the Way: Asthma Management Programs in Boston
By Margaret Reid
On behalf of the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC), a previous winner of EPA’s
National Environmental Leadership Award in Asthma Management, I would like to congratulate
Peach State Health Plan, Tufts Medical Center and Multnomah County Health Department for
winning this year’s awards. BPHC is honored to partner with EPA to improve the lives of
people with asthma in Boston, and ultimately throughout the country. In Boston, we’re
launching initiatives to address asthma control in the school and child care settings, including
attempting electronic referral with the medical home and community resources.
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Tufts Medical Center, located in Boston’s Chinatown neighborhood, serves an immigrant
Chinese patient population. Tufts is a member of our city-wide Boston Asthma Home Visit
Collaborative. Our collaborative may be the only community in the Asthma Community Network that
can say that ALL of our members have been recognized with the EPA’s national asthma
award, including: Boston Public Health Commission/Boston Medical Center in 2009,
Neighborhood Health Plan and Boston Children’s Hospital in 2010 and now Tufts Medical
Center in 2014! This collaborative approach serves as a model for programs across the country,
and in partnership with EPA, we’ve helped other programs implement effective asthma
programs.
One example highlights our partnership with 2014 winner Multnomah County Health Department in
Portland, Oregon. In 2009, Multnomah contacted BPHC about Boston’s Breathe Easy at
Home Program, which allows clinicians to make on-line referrals for home inspections for their
patients with asthma. Multnomah not only adapted the program, they set the bar so much
higher! Visit http://www.asthmacommunitynetwork.org/webinars to learn about their
comprehensive program which receives web-based referrals and provides inspection and/or home
visits based on their client needs. In addition, they’re receiving reimbursement for these
services, which is extremely impressive.
2. Asthma Awareness Month provides us an
opportunity to feature our successful
partnerships, implement activities to raise
asthma awareness, and engage with
organizations across the country to share
best practices. In May, under the umbrella
of the Healthier Roxbury Asthma Subgroup
of the Massachusetts Alliance for Quality
Health, we’re challenging ourselves
to a “Tweet a day for the month of
May†to spread asthma awareness.
Follow us on @HealthyRoxbury during
the month of May. Learn more about all of
our award winning programs by reading about EPA’s National Environmental Leadership
Award in Asthma Management.
About the author:  Margaret Reid is a registered nurse and will complete her Master in Public
Administration in June 2014. As Director of the Boston Public Health Commission’s Division
of Healthy Homes and Community Supports, Ms. Reid oversees the Commissions Asthma Prevention
and Control Program, which works to improve the health of Boston children and adults with asthma,
with a focus on low-income residents and minority populations.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect
EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents
of the blog.
