They were missing 50 days of school a year, and now we have it down to about one or two days. Emergency rooms see a difference as well. They don't keep specific numbers, but anecdotal accounts have fewer kids rushing in for treatment. Cannell, now a freshman state lawmaker, says his experience with the Yuma County clinics reinforces his belief in universal health care, something he'll push for this session. He's seen what prevention can do, both to costs and to quality of life.
Education also makes a difference.
The American Lung Association of Arizona trains school nurses and volunteers in its Open Airways program, which teaches kids in grades 3 through 5 how to treat asthma. Even though organizers knew Yuma County's troubling reputation for asthma, they were surprised at the demand for their program. Such programs are important to health officials because they emphasize prevention - something many area residents don't get when they rely on Mexican doctors for their care. Mexico's different medical standards complicate asthma treatment in Yuma. By then, the child is back home in Yuma County, leaving the child's school or doctor to deal with the next attack, Matos says.