The Community Asthma Prevention Program Celebrates 20 Years at CHOP

The program focuses on helping families combat asthma in low-income neighborhoods

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Oct 16, 2017, 15:53 ET

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 16, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Community Asthma Prevention Program (CAPP) is celebrating its 20^th anniversary at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). CAPP offers free asthma education classes to families in schools, churches, and community centers throughout Philadelphia, and provides home visits to families in Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties.

From left to right: The Stewart Family, Dr. Tyra Bryant-Stephens, CEO and president Madeline Bell, Charmane Braxton, and Philadelphia Health Commissioner Thomas Farley post for a photo at the CAPP 20th Anniversary press conference.

"I'm extremely proud of the impact our team has made on the Philadelphia area over the past two decades," says Tyra Bryant-Stephens, MD, medical director of CAPP at CHOP. "Our community health workers really take the time to get to know these families and understand what their struggles are and how they can address those issues."

CAPP started in 1997 when Dr. Bryant-Stephens and her colleagues realized the exorbitant number of patients coming to the Emergency Department for their asthma attacks, despite the care these patients were already receiving. CAPP was then developed as a way to fill this gap in care by promoting asthma self-management. Since then, CAPP has been funded by the Office of Minority Health, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention and the Merck Childhood Asthma Network. In 2015 Dr. Bryant-Stephens was invited by President Obama to participate in a roundtable discussion on climate change and health because of CAPP's successes in the community.

Asthma is the most chronic condition among children and adolescents in the United States. Closer to home, one out of every four children in West Philadelphia suffers from asthma. Many common triggers, such as dust and pollution, are especially prevalent in Philadelphia neighborhoods. Over the past twenty years, CAPP intervention has led to a reduction in Emergency Department visits at CHOP by 30 to 50 percent.

About Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: Children's Hospital of Philadelphia was founded in 1855 as the nation's first pediatric hospital. Through its long-standing commitment to providing exceptional patient care, training new generations of pediatric healthcare professionals, and pioneering major research initiatives, Children's Hospital has fostered many discoveries that have benefited children worldwide. Its pediatric research program is among the largest in the country. In addition, its unique family-centered care and public service programs have brought the 546-bed hospital recognition as a leading advocate for children and adolescents. For more information, visit http://www.chop.edu

Contact: Camillia Travia
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
(267) 426-6251 (office)
(425) 492-5007 (cell)
[email protected]

SOURCE Children's Hospital of Philadelphia