Social Support and Education in Asthma Follow-up (SSEA)

We will evaluate the effect of an eighteen-month asthma coaching intervention for parents/caregivers of children with asthma to reduce asthma morbidity. The primary objective is to determine if asthma coaching will significantly reduce asthma morbidity as measured by a reduction in the number of ED visits and hospitalizations for the children during the 18 months of active coaching and during the 18 months after the coaching stops. We will provide half of the subjects (parents/caregivers) with access to assistance from an asthma coach for 18 months (including 2 contacts with an asthma nurse during the first 6 months). The other half of the subjects will not have an asthma coach, but their children will have their usual routine care with their primary care providers. The nurse and coach will help the subjects learn more about caring for their children's asthma and improving interactions with the primary care providers for their children.