Revitalising Asthma Care and Treatment (ReACT): A School-Based Asthma Training Programme

Research question: How effective is a school-based asthma training program in improving the knowledge of staff on first-aid management of asthma in school? Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) guideline on school health services recommends providing school staff with first-aid asthma training to support the care of children with asthma in all settings. Malaysia, however, has no programme to support self-management of asthma in schools. In a previous RESPIRE feasibility study, we developed a training programme for school staff to provide timely and appropriate care for children with asthma in school. We found that it was feasible to deliver the training session and received good feedback. Hence, we aim to conduct a pilot cluster randomised controlled trial (cRCT) to estimate the effectiveness of the programme. Methodology: In this pilot cRCT, we will assess the impact of a school-based asthma training programme delivered to school staff in government primary schools in Klang District, Malaysia. We will train the doctors and nurses of the Klang district school health team and deliver the school-based asthma programme together. Two schools will be randomised to receive the intervention and another two to receive a general health education. For primary outcome, we will assess the knowledge of school staff using a validated questionnaire at baseline, 1-,3-,6- and 12-month post-intervention. The feasibility of implementing the programme will be assessed as a secondary outcome. Questions to discuss: • How do we increase participation of school staff for this training program? • Is knowledge the best outcome? Could we measure behaviour of the staff in managing asthma events? • How many schools do we recruit to randomise to intervention and control? Should we aim for more schools?