The Bureau & Putnam County Asthma Team is made up of a group of local individuals and organizations dedicated to improving the quality of life for people with asthma. Our "gameplan" is to address asthma through awareness, education, and advocacy.

We have an asthma program called Controlling Pediatric Asthma Through Collaboration and Education (C-PATCE). This programs goal is to help you manage your child's asthma so that you can all lead a healthy and active life.

A trained asthma lay health educator will give you personalized asthma care by working in partnership with you and your primary care provider to manage your child's asthma in the best way possible.
Your asthma lay health educator will work with you. Your first visit with the lay health educator will take place in your hamoe at a time convenient for you. After that, you will have two more home visits.
at each visit, you and your asthma lay health educator will see how well your child's asthma is controlled. You will work together on ways to better manage your child's asthma, such as how to avoid things that may trigger your child's asthma; monitoring asthma symptoms, making the best use of your medications, and maaging asthma flare-ups. Your asthma lay health educator will help you to control your child's asthma so that it does not control you.
All services are provided FREE of charge to families living in Bureau County and Putnam County. We respect people's privacy and will keep ALL records confidential.

For more information on our Bureau/Putnam County Asthma Program
call Dawn Conerton at (815) 872-5091, ext. 224 or email dconerton@bchealthdepartment.org

What you can do to prevent asthma flare-ups:
*Avoid asthma "triggers", or those things that cause your child's asthma to flare-up.
*Help your child to use his or her inhalers and spacers correctly so that he/she gets the most benefit from the asthma medicines.
*Make sure that your child takes his/her "long-term control" medicines daily, or as directed by your health care provider.
*Check your child's peak flows and watch for asthma symptoms, which help you to recognize when a flare-up is coming.
*Avoid smoking and exposing your child to smoke.
*Reduce your child's risk of colds and flu by encouraging frequent hand washing and getting your child a flu shot every year.
*Learn exactly what to do when a flare-up begins. With proper training, medication, and confidence, you can often handle a flare up at home.