Resource
Creating Asthma Friendly Environments
Child care administrators play a central role in creating asthma child care centres. The following implementation tips include activities appropriate for administrators to support asthma friendly child care centres.
- Include a question about whether a child has asthma and/or uses asthma medication on the Child Care Registration Form.
- Create an Asthma Information Package and have each parent/guardian of a child with asthma complete the forms included to ensure that parents/guardians are aware of their responsibilities and understand how the child care center is creating a safe and supportive environment.
- Ensure child care providers meet with each parent/guardian of a child with asthma to review their completed forms included in their Asthma Information Package as listed
- Annually provide child care providers with a list of children who have asthma and/or use asthma medication and ensure that the children's completed Child Asthma Management Plan is easily accessible/viewable in each of the child care centre rooms. This may also include displaying in staff lunch rooms.
- Display the Lung Health Foundation's What to do in the event of an Asthma Attack poster in all centre rooms and offices.
- Monitor for asthma triggers on an ongoing basis and take action to reduce exposure to asthma triggers whenever possible.
- Encourage children with asthma to participate in physical activities, such as recess and play time.
- Develop and review annually an asthma policy or ensure existing policies reflect current best practices and:
- allow children easy access to asthma medications at all times, including during field trips and off campus activities;
- include a child care centre wide process for handling worsening asthma and asthma emergencies;
- include training for all child care centre staff and volunteers on signs of asthma, how to give asthma medication, and how to recognize and respond to worsening asthma and asthma emergencies;
- describe a process for identifying and reducing exposure to asthma triggers.