METHODS
The Childhood Asthma Linkages in Missouri (CALM) program was designed in 2008 by the Missouri Foundation for Health (MFH) to support collaborations among schools, medical care providers, and
other community organizations working to improve asthma care and health outcomes for children. As the
prevalence of asthma among children in Missouri is even higher than it is nationally, with 10.1% of children 18 years or younger reporting current asthma, according to the 2008 wave of the Behavioral Risk
Factor Surveillance System,26 the need for effective interventions for children with asthma in Missouri is
especially salient. CALM grantees—schools, hospitals, community- and university-based health centers, and public health departments across the state—were tasked by MFH with developing and implementing comprehensive asthma programs which incorporate long-term behavior change as well as develop systems
to advance and sustain asthma care for children. Thus, the need for sustainability was present at the inception of the program and one of the foundations of the work of the CALM grantees