Asthma in Children and Young People

Asthma is the most common long-term medical condition in children in the UK, with around 1 in 11 children and young people living with asthma. The UK has one of the highest prevalence, emergency admission and death rates for childhood asthma in Europe. Outcomes are worse for children and young people living in the most deprived areas.

NHS England and NHS Improvement’s ambition is to reduce avoidable harm to children and young people from asthma and improve their quality of life. This will be achieved by taking a whole system approach to asthma management that includes addressing environmental triggers, a comprehensive education programme, promoting personalised care, effective preventative medicine and improved accuracy of diagnosis.

NHS England and Improvement have been working with key stakeholders, including young people and their families, to develop a National Bundle of Care for Children and Young People with Asthma to support local systems with the management of asthma care. The programme sets out the blueprint of evidence-based interventions to help children, young people, families and carers, to control and reduce the risk of asthma attacks and to prevent avoidable harm. 

There are four ways to support a child and young person to manage their Asthma:
1. A Personalised Asthma Action Plan (PAAP)
2. Understand how to use inhalers correctly. 
3. Timely clinical review 
4. Air Pollution and its impact on Respiratory conditions

The National Bundle of Care for Children and Young People with Asthma highlights the importance of educating and training everyone who comes in contact with the child and young person to have basic awareness of Asthma and ways to manage the symptoms or exacerbations. 

Ask About Asthma have produced the video below aimed at children and young people to reiterate the importance of knowing about Asthma.

In order to embed these into Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care System, Children and Young People Asthma Partnership Group was established with sub-groups to focus on specific areas. 

One of these subgroups is ‘Training and Education’ that initiated the project for developing ‘Asthma Friendly Setting’ Accreditation. The aim of the project is to enable Schools across Coventry and Warwickshire to become Asthma Friendly by accessing resources and training, completing a self-assessment checklist and provide evidence to be awarded an Asthma Friendly School accreditation.