Michigan Asthma Steering Committee (MASC)

The purpose of Project SENSOR (Sentinel Event Notification System for Occupational Risks) is for the state to conduct patient and work place follow up based on the approximately 20,000 occupational disease reports (including work-related asthma) received each year at the Michigan Department of Consumer and Industry Services. The project is based at Michigan State University in Lansing. Inspections at work places of individuals who develop occupational asthma consistently identify large numbers of fellow workers with asthma or respiratory symptoms compatible with asthma, despite air monitoring at these same facilities which typically reveals the exposure to be within permissible levels. For SENSOR reports and other information, go to http://www.chm.msu.edu/oem/index.htm

The Medical Services Administration of the Michigan Department of Community Health offers a number of programs including:

MEDICAID This site provides information on variety of Michigan Medicaid programs, including lists of sanction providers and health plans. For more information, go to: http://www.mdch.state.mi.us/msa/mdch_msa/msahome.HTM

Children with Special Health Care Needs is a medical assistance program for children and some adults with special health care needs (such as severe asthma) and their families. For more information, go to:http://www.mdch.state.mi.us/msa/mdch_msa/cshcs.htm

MICHILD is a health insurance program for uninsured children of Michigan's working families. MIChild services are provided by many HMOs and other health care plans throughout Michigan. For more information go to: http://www.mdch.state.mi.us/msa/mdch_msa/miindex.htm

There are seven asthma coalitions in Michigan, each with its own focus, structure, and history. According to the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program of the NHLBI, a community asthma coalition is a broad-based, multi-organizational, community partnership that brings together the public, private, or nonprofit sectors for a prolonged period in an effort to reduce asthma morbidity and mortality and to improve quality of life indicators for asthma patients and their families.

The American Lung Association of Michigan has been a partner in the development of all of these asthma coalitions. All coalitions are involved with patient and professional education and school-based interventions. Several coalitions are involved with asthma case management work and outdoor air quality monitoring. Some coalitions, like the Detroit Asthma Coalition, have a role networking and coordinating the existing asthma education, intervention, and research activities of member organizations. Others, such as the Pediatric Asthma Network of Western Michigan, see their main focus as developing and implementing intervention activities. Most coalitions use a little of each strategy, always relying on the energies and time of their voluntary members.

The Detroit Asthma Coalition (DAC) has a unique focus on networking the research and service activities in Detroit and beyond. DAC's mission is

"to serve as a forum for cooperation and information exchange for groups and individuals involved in asthma care in Detroit. Through this exchange, we will develop projects to complement and enhance ongoing asthma initiatives, provide support, identify opportunities for further outreach, and serve as an advocate for the asthmatic population of Detroit."

DAC developed out of a need to reduce the duplication of activities in Detroit and the increasing competition for limited resources. By working together, DAC members can learn from other members successes and mistakes when developing protocols and interventions, coordinate resource listings of patient education materials and public awareness messages, develop cooperative studies, and stretch available resources through collaboration.

The DAC has five standing committees: Research and Outcomes, Public Awareness, Finance and Marketing, Professional Education, and Patient Education. The DAC has over 150 member organizations, including a number of Michigan universities, hospitals, health plans, and pharmaceutical companies. Among DAC's many activities are the development of a listing of patient education resources, a study of quality of asthma care in area emergency departments, and the development a series of radio spots to raise public awareness about asthma.

The mission of the Genesee Childhood Asthma Task Force (GCATF) is

"to work together to identify concerns, share resources, set priorities, engage in research, and to education and advocate for effective childhood asthma management in Genesee County."

GCATF includes members from area hospitals and health care providers, University of Michigan Flint, Flint Board of Education and Genesee Intermediate School District, Genesee County Health Department, ALAM, United Way, United Auto Workers-General Motors Child Development Association, Day Care Providers Association, local media, Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America, and a number of other community coalitions in the area. Currently, GCATF is conducting a Community Study of Asthma with the Hurley Medical Center and local school districts, including extensive case management activities and in-home assessments for asthmatic children. GCAFT is also involved in a County Public Health Department project to link outdoor air pollutant measures to emergency room admissions for asthma in Flint. GCATF has held a number of public relation events, including "Children Need Clean Air Campaign" promoting smoke free environments for children.

The Mid-Michigan Asthma Coalition (Mid-MAC), which began in the spring in 1999, is developing a focus with employers and recognizing the importance of asthma on the work environment as well. Membership is being drawn from area school districts, local health plans, health care providers, and large employers in the area. Mid-MAC's standing committee structure includes Data, Awareness, Patient and Professional Education Committees.

The Pediatric Asthma Network of West Michigan (PANWM) (formerly the Kent County Pediatric Asthma Network) offers expertise to the Grand Rapids and lake shore areas. The mission of the Pediatric Asthma Network of West Michigan is

"to improve the lives of all infants, children, and adolescents with asthma by providing educational and professional expertise."

PANWM was formed when local health care professionals met to address the issue increasing morbidity and mortality related to pediatric asthma. The group wished to develop a uniform message for asthma care in all facilities in Grand Rapids. PANWM membership draws members from Advantage Health and Priority Health (local providers), local public health, area hospitals, Grand Valley State University, Kent County Health Department, Visiting Nurses Services, and a number of area private practices. Members include physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists, social workers, pharmacologists, educators, and family members of children with asthma. PANWM members form various committees including: Membership, Finance, Education, Research, and Marketing & Development.

PANWM runs the Asthma Resource Center for Children (ARCC), which offers an asthma information clearinghouse, a speaker's bureau, and case management and consultative services. Speakers are available for presentations to school, health care, parent, and other community groups. ARCC has developed a packet of materials for children with asthma, their families, and health care providers including information on asthma warning signs, peak flow dairies, triggers of asthma, use of and cleaning of inhalers and nebulizers, smoking cessation programs, asthma camps, social service information, and other information. This packet is designed to be used at all points of contact within the health care system to provide consistent asthma educational materials to pediatric asthma pateints and their families.

The Traverse City Asthma Coalition (TCAC) has coordinated on-going asthma education programs and provides referral information regarding asthma resources in the area. Members of the preliminary group have been active in the Summit of Michigan Asthma Coalitions.

The Tri-County Asthma Coalition (TAC) encompasses Bay, Midland, and Saginaw counties in Michigan's "thumb region". The group was formed by a number of respiratory therapists and health care providers who had been developing asthma education and management protocols for their own medical centers and saw a need for region-wide coordination. TAC is currently reviewing asthma education materials to provide a tri-county wide listing of resources and materials for public schools, patient education, and other uses.

The Washtenaw Asthma Surveillance Team (WAST) formed to work on the Asthma Profile of Washtenaw County, published in 1997. WAST was formed due to asthma being identified as a critical health issues for county residents in the County Health Improvement Plan and findings of the MDCH report "An Analysis of Childhood Asthma Hospitalization and Deaths in Michigan, 1989-1993", pointing to three zip codes in the county that had excessively high asthma hospitalization rates. The Profile includes prevalence data from a residential telephone survey, as well as primary care practice, emergency room utilization, hospital admission, and mortality data regarding asthma. WAST's Profile has become a model that other local public health departments are using to develop their own analysis of asthma in their communities.

WAST is working to reduce the burden of asthma through targeted services and education. WAST is unusual among the coalitions in its focus on developing surveillance data for base line and evaluation of activities. WAST has two standing committees: Washtenaw Health Education for Asthma Suffers, which works to implement the education and service interventions recommendations of the Profile in collaboration with other community groups, and the Research and Surveillance Team that supplies the WHEAS group with targeting and evaluation data for activities, as well as develops epidemiologic studies to explore the excess hospitalizations in Ypsilanti zip codes. WAST is developing research on school-based asthma surveillance, geocoding the residences of people with hospitalization and emergency room visits for asthma, and outdoor air quality monitoring.

The Michigan Summit of Asthma Coalitions was convened in 1999 to identify the goals, activities, and barriers shared by Michigan's asthma coalitions. The Summit is relying on materials from the NHLBI, including the working definition of a Community Asthma Coalition of the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program. Contact the American Lung Association of Michigan (ALAM) for more information.

For information about other local asthma coalitions around the nation, go to NHLBI's coalition support web page at: http://www.nhlbisupport.com/asthma/coalitioncorner/communicate.htm

These links are provided as a service to our users. Links to these Internet sites do not necessarily indicate endorsement of these sites or their contents by the Michigan Department of Community Health.