Asthma treatment and control is an ongoing project for the Health Education team at Health Plus.  They spend a lot of time each year going to schools all over the five boroughs of New York City to teach children about the dangers of Asthma and importance of proper medication and avoiding the triggers that can cause an Asthma attack.  Each year they pull an idea from their lesson book and use it as the theme for the contest.  The theme for this year’s contest was Air Quality and Physical Activity.  All contestants were rated using six criteria: Accuracy of message, effectiveness, creativity, originality, adherence to the guidelines, and positive concept. 

Judges Julia Choe of the Department of Education; Felicita Saldana of the Department of Education; Betty Perez-Rivera from the Childhood Asthma Initiative at Montefiore Hospital; Rosanna Quezada of the American Lung Association; Dr. Cheryl Lawrence MD from the Department of Health; Joseph Barr from the Department of Transportation; and Margaret Wilson, RN, Lutheran Medical Center, observed and critiqued 84 entries from 22 different elementary schools from all five boroughs of New York City.

“Asthma is a problem that has an enormous affect on our community,” says Tom Early, Executive Director of Health Plus.  “It’s imperative that we do everything we can to educate our school-children, as well as their parents and teachers, concerning proper treatment and symptom prevention to ensure the best health possible for all children.  At Health Plus, we are very proud to hold this contest and we are honored to have such great partners working with us on this important mission.”