CHILD AND ADOLESCENT HEALTH Evaluation of the feasibility of a school-based asthma management programme in Taiwan Suh-Hwa Maa, Yue-Cune Chang, Chun-Liang Chou, Shu-Chuan Ho, Te-Fang Sheng, Karen MacDonald, Yanping Wang, Yu-Ming Shen and Ivo Abraham Aims and objectives. To investigate the feasibility of a school-based asthma management programme for middle school chil- dren. Background. Asthma rates are increasing among school-aged children. Successful asthma treatment in children depends in part on clear communication and effective education. Design. This feasibility study employed a one-group only longitudinal design with four time points over 18 months. Methods. Nineteen female and twelve male (n = 31) seventh-grade children with asthma (13 SD 0Æ71 years) were identified using a six-stage asthma case-finding approach. Teachers and school staff were trained in the principles and methods of the proposed school-based asthma management programme. An individualised guided asthma self-management programme was developed for each child by a clinical team at a major academic medical centre. We assisted teachers in implementing the school programme; building a support network and monitoring children’s activities. Outcome measures included lung function tests (at 0, six, 12 and 18 months), disease-related symptoms, psychosocial status and impact of asthma on learning (at 0 and 18 months). School provided data on academic achievement and school absences at 0, six, 12 and 18 months. Results. Significant improvements were noted at six, 12 and 18 months on forced vital capacity (FVC)% of predicted (p= 0Æ001, 0Æ015, 0Æ015, respectively), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV 1 )% of predicted (p =0Æ001, 0Æ006, 0Æ088, respectively) and FEV 1 /FVC% of predicted (p =0Æ001, 0Æ015, 0Æ099, respectively). There was a trend towards improved asthma symptoms (p =0Æ050) and a significant decrease in positive perception of curriculum (p =0Æ017) at 18 months after adjustment for covariates. Conclusions. This programme was associated with respiratory benefits on physiological asthma markers commonly, with a trend for symptom control. Academic and psychosocial outcomes are subject of further inquiry. Relevance to clinical practice. School-based asthma management holds promise as a feasible clinical option for middle school children with asthma in the Taiwanese school system. Key words: asthma, feasibility, nurses, school nursing, Taiwan Accepted for publication: 11 February 2010 Authors: Suh-Hwa Maa, DSN, RN, Professor, Department of Somatics and Sports Leisure Industry, National Taitung University, Taitung; Yue-Cune Chang, PhD, Professor, Department of Mathematics, Tamkang University, Tamsui; Chun-Liang Chou, MD, Instructor, Department of Thoracic Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan; Shu-Chuan Ho, PhD, RN, Assistant Professor, Department of Thoracic Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan and School of Respiratory Therapy, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei; Te-Fang Sheng, BSN, RN, Therapist, Department of Thoracic Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan; Karen MacDonald, PhD, RN, Managing Director, Matrix45, Earlysville; Yanping Wang, PhD, Research Scientist, Matrix45, Earlysville; Yu-Ming Shen, PhD, Research Scientist, Matrix45, Earlysville, VA, USA; Ivo Abraham, PhD, RN, Professor, Center for Health Outcomes and Pharmacoeconomic Research, College of Pharmacy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ and Chief Scientist, Matrix45, Earlysville, VA, USA Correspondence: Suh-Hwa Maa, Professor, Department of Somatics and Sports Leisure Industry, National Taitung University, No. 369, Shi-Kamg Rd. Sec. 2, Taitung 95092, Taiwan. Telephone: +886 89 517816. E-mail: shmaa@nttu.edu.tw Ó 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd, Journal of Clinical Nursing, 19, 2415–2423 2415 doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2010.03283.x