baylor scott & white health Health Care Reimagined camp wheeze away eases asthma
For Wade Whitney , 10 , it was a rite of spring to be hospitalized because of allergy-induced asthma . However , 2016 marked the first time in three years that rite was annulled . What made the difference ? Camp Wheeze Away at Peaceable Kingdom Retreat for Children , 20 miles south of Killeen , an annual camp sponsored by Baylor Scott & White McLane Children ’ s Medical Center .
Participants in the free , five-day overnight excursion are asthma patients who have been hospitalized within the past year . Campers receive at least one hour of asthma education every day and discover that with proper asthma management , they can enjoy life without physical limitations .
Wade has attended the camp the past two summers . In addition , he is a regular at the hospital ’ s bimonthly clinic on life-threatening asthma , where a pulmonologist and allergist jointly test for allergies and lung function and educate patients on how to manage severe asthma . The program also provides asthma education for local school nurses and hosts quarterly community asthma classes .
Stacie Walker-Posvar is a full-time certified asthma educator who coordinates outreach and education about asthma within the system and in the community . She identifies patients at risk for uncontrolled asthma and begins intervention . The goal is to reduce recurrent emergency department visits and hospitalizations , as well as school absenteeism .
The programs are important weapons in Baylor Scott & White Health ’ s multi-front war against pediatric asthma , the most common chronic childhood disease . A major cause of disability , asthma is twice as prevalent among children under the age of 18 than it is among adults . Up to 75 percent of these children have poorly controlled asthma . Household finances , family priorities and parental undervaluation of their children ’ s asthma symptoms are also factors in poorly controlled asthma .
Wade is a testament to the asthma programs ’ success . He has been using his rescue inhaler less and is less likely to miss playing sports during peak allergy seasons . He ’ s also a very happy camper .
Thanks to Camp Wheeze Away , Wade Whitney is no longer hospitalized every spring for asthma crises caused by allergies .
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