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Help control your child’s asthma by making sure prescribed medications are taken, even after a long time without asthma symptoms. Have your child tested for their asthma triggers by their doctor. Keep an asthma diary that describes everything about each asthma attack: when, where, what and why. Talk your child’s doctor about your results.
- When- When did the attack happen? What time of day or night?
- Where- Where was your child: at home, school, car, outside?
- What- What was your child doing when the asthma attack started? Sometimes it can take hours for symptoms to start after contact to a trigger.
- Why- Try to guess the reason for the asthma attack. Was your child sleeping or exercising? Had your child been around secondhand smoke?
Steps families can take to be sure your child is in a safe and healthy atmosphere at school.
- Talk to your child’s teachers, bus driver and school nurse about asthma. School staff that care for your child should know your child’s asthma triggers and symptoms during an asthma attack. They need to know the actions to take during an asthma attack. Make a checklist of documents to bring to school and questions you what to ask. Print the Asthma School Checklist to take with you.
- Give a copy of the doctor’s prescribed Asthma Action Plan to your child’s teachers, bus driver and school nurse at the beginning of each school year. Explain how to read and follow the plan. The Asthma Action Plan should include the child’s asthma triggers, medication, peak flow meter readings, emergency contact information and actions to take during an asthma attack.