The UNMC College of Nursing West Nebraska Division in Scottsbluff and community partners will hold the Third Annual Asthma Awareness event Saturday, April 26, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event, which is open to the public, will offer free asthma screenings and education at the Monument Mall in Scottsbluff, 2302 Frontage Road.
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Sponsors of the event are the college, LINCARE, Inc., Panhandle Community Services, the Nebraska Student Nurses Association, Lakhman Gondalia, M.D. of the Wyoming Chest and Allergy Clinic, Cheyenne, Wyo., and other area health providers.
The event will include educational children’s activities. Prize drawings will be held. At 2 p.m., a release of 100 balloons into the air will signify lifting the burden of asthma.
Kim Rodehorst, Ph.D., assistant professor, and Jan Judy, assistant professor, both of the UNMC College of Nursing West Nebraska Division, said the purpose of the event is to increase awareness of the burden of asthma and the need to improve asthma care. Free lung function tests for screening of asthma will be available, as well as education, including what the common triggers of asthma are, asthma medications, use of peak flow monitor and signs and symptoms of asthma.
“There is a lot to be done to educate our community about asthma so those with asthma can control it and live active lives,” Dr. Rodehorst said. “Despite the new National Institutes of Health asthma guidelines drafted by experts around the country, there are patients who don’t get the recommended asthma management and treatment.”
It is estimated that 150 million people worldwide suffer from asthma, making it one of the most common chronic diseases worldwide. Left untreated, asthma often leads to hospitalization, absenteeism from school and work, limitations on physical activity, and, in some cases, death.
Information about asthma is available at:
www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/prof/lung/asthma/wad/index.htm.