Asthma related resources at Department of Public Health (DPH)
Bureau of Community Health and Prevention
- Work-related Asthma l Occupational Health Surveillance Program
Asthma may be caused or made worse by exposures in the workplace, such as cleaning chemicals, wheat flour, mold, wood dusts, spray polyurethane foam, and many others.
According to our data, an estimated 200,000 adults in Massachusetts have work-related asthma. Health care providers should ask all adult patients with new or worsening asthma about work and report suspected cases of work-related asthma to the Department of Public Health (DPH).
School Health Services is comprised of professional staff who collaborate with other Department of Public Health programs and the Massachusetts Department of Education to provide ongoing school health service systems development and technical assistance to the Commonwealth's public school districts and nonpublic schools. This represents approximately 880,000 public school students and 120,000 nonpublic school students.
MTCP is a statewide public health program focused on comprehensive approaches to reduce tobacco and nicotine use. Our mission is to reduce the health and economic burden of tobacco use by preventing young people from starting to use tobacco and nicotine products, helping current tobacco and nicotine users to quit, protecting children and adults from secondhand smoke, and identifying and eliminating tobacco-related disparities.
Bureau of Climate and Environmental Health
- Pediatric Asthma and Diabetes Surveillance | Division of Environmental Epidemiology
The Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) portal operated by the Bureau of Climate and Environmental Health at DPH. The portal is a public-facing tool that provides data on the tracked prevalence of asthma among children in grades K-8 (age 5-14) from public, private, and charter schools in Massachusetts. This data can be used to support surveillance activities, communities in better understanding their asthma burden, and provides important community level data to help inform asthma interventions across DPH. The Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) portal operated by the Bureau of Climate and Environmental Health at DPH. The portal is a public-facing tool that provides data on the tracked prevalence of asthma among children in grades K-8 (age 5-14) from public, private, and charter schools in Massachusetts. This data can be used to support surveillance activities, communities in better understanding their asthma burden, and provides important community level data to help inform asthma interventions across DPH.
Pediatric Asthma Surveillance in Massachusetts via EPHT
- Asthma and Your Environment | Division of Environmental Epidemiology
BCEH provides information about asthma and the environment and helps to educate the public about the variety of environmental exposures that can trigger asthma attacks. Some chemicals and pollutants in your environment can make your asthma worse. Your environment is where you live, learn, work, play or visit.
According to the American Thoracic Society, 15% of asthma in adults is caused or exacerbated by work. It is estimated that approximately 27,000 adults in Massachusetts have work-related asthma. Since 1993 physicians have been required to report both suspected and confirmed cases of work-related asthma to the DPH.
Other key Massachusetts asthma resources
Key national asthma resources
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Asthma Control Program
- Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) L Asthma
- Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Healthy Homes Program
HUD believes communities should make homes available to families that are affordable and healthy. "Healthy Homes" is a century-old concept that promotes safe, decent, and sanitary housing as a means for preventing disease and injury. There is a lot of emerging scientific evidence linking health outcomes such as asthma, lead poisoning, and unintentional injuries to substandard housing. And, there are more than 6 million substandard housing units nationwide.
- Allergy and Asthma Network
- Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA)
- American Lung Association (ALA), Asthma Resource Library
ALA supports asthma in researching treatments and cures for lung diseases, keeping kids off tobacco, including e-cigarettes, and advocating for laws that protect the air we all breathe. To support the quality of life for those living with asthma, they maintain an interactive resource library that includes videos, toolkits, worksheets, infographics, and other resources for asthma patients and caregivers.
The AAAAI has games, puzzles, videos, and more to help you learn about managing your allergies and asthma.
- Asthma Management Guidelines: Focused Updates 2020
Since the Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma (EPR-3) was released in 2007, scientists have made substantial progress in understanding asthma diagnosis, management, and treatment. Based on systematic reviews conducted by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality with input from the National Asthma Education Prevention Program (NAEPP) participant organizations, medical experts, and the public, the NHLBI supported the development of the 2020 Focused Updates to the Asthma Management Guidelines: A Report from the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program Coordinating Committee Expert Panel Working Group2020 Focused Updates to the Asthma Management Guidelines: A Report from the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program Coordinating Committee Expert Panel Working Group. The guidance is designed to support informed, shared decision making among primary care providers, specialists, and patients about asthma management.