Kati Baker, a mother in Merced, joined the Merced-Mariposa County Asthma Coalition (MMCAC) after her son Brandon ended up in the emergency room with a severe asthma attack. Brandon’s teacher had insisted he run a mile in dusty air, despite his asthma, and Baker wanted to make sure things like that didn’t happen again.

Now, two years later, more than 100 schools in Merced County, and hundreds in neighboring Central Valley counties, fly color-coded flags to announce the day’s air quality. Green and yellow mean OK; orange means students with respiratory sensitivities stay indoors. Red means everyone stays indoors.

The asthma flag program, first launched by MMCAC, is one response to the Central Valley “air pollution crisis,” says MMCAC program manager Mary-Michal Rawling. Former MMCAC manager Alicia Bohlke, for example, says her six-year-old son had few problems back in Florida, but several months after moving to Merced, “I had the worse scare of my life. He was in the ER all night.”

MMCAC got the idea of asthma flags from a more limited program in Long Beach, then brought it to local schools. Their strategy:

• Starting at the top—they first got the support of the county superintendent, then went to district superintendents and principals
• Involving school nurses as allies
• Bringing informational materials. “We even brought them the flags,” says Bohlke.
• Following up with a survey of all the schools.

Results

• Immediate benefits: In the survey, sponsored by the Central Valley Asthma Coalitions, almost all the school administrators reported that they fly the flags every day and more than four-fifths said the program helps kids with asthma.

• Raising awareness: About three-quarters of the administrators said the program has “made school staff more aware of the importance of addressing other asthma-related issues.” MMCAC followed up by meeting with school staff about the need for “asthma plans” for students with asthma. In addition, says Rawling, the program is helpful in “just getting people thinking about air pollution and the connection to health effects.” This year, she reports, MMCAC members lobbied for SB 999 (Machado), to expand the membership and “give more tools” to the San Joaquin Air Pollution Control District.

What advice would MMCAC give to other parents of kids with asthma? “If they have an asthma coalition in their community,” says Bohlke, “I would join!”

To find your local asthma coalition, go to www.calasthma.org and click on “asthma in your area” or call 510-302-3365.

Merced-Mariposa County Asthma Coalition

• Grassroots participation: MMCAC is a “grassroots community-based health organization,” says Rawling, with 80 volunteers “from a host of backgrounds” including education, health, and business, and parents of children with asthma.

• Statewide network: MMCAC is one of 27 asthma coalitions in the statewide Community Action to Fight Asthma network, funded by The California Endowment.

• Contact: 209-384-6759, www.calasthma.org