alt text: Flowchart depicting the study participant selection and follow-up process
The SHARP Approach: An Academic Focus
SHARP distinguishes itself through its integration into the school curriculum. It combines core subjects like biology, psychology, and sociology with age-appropriate reading, writing, and math activities. This academic approach aims to enhance asthma knowledge, reasoning skills regarding symptom management, and ultimately improve self-care behaviors.
SHARP specifically targets older elementary school children (grades 4-7), a demographic with higher asthma morbidity and mortality rates. This period also marks a crucial transition towards personal responsibility for health management.
Comparing SHARP and Open Airways for Schools
The core of this study was a head-to-head comparison of SHARP and a well-established non-academic program, Open Airways for Schools (OAS). The research sought to determine which program was more effective in improving asthma knowledge and reasoning skills in fourth and fifth-grade students.
A cluster-randomized, single-blinded trial design was employed. Twenty-three elementary schools were matched based on demographics and academic performance, then randomly assigned to either the SHARP or OAS program. Certified elementary school teachers delivered both programs during regular instructional time. Data on student knowledge and reasoning skills were collected at baseline, one month, 12 months, and 24 months post-intervention.
Results: SHARP’s Impact on Asthma Knowledge
Multilevel modeling analysis revealed that students in the SHARP program demonstrated significantly greater improvement in both asthma knowledge and reasoning skills compared to their OAS counterparts.
Specifically, SHARP students exhibited a steeper increase in knowledge immediately after the program and maintained this advantage throughout the two-year follow-up period. While OAS students also showed improvement, their gains were less pronounced and did not persist to the same extent. This finding highlights the potential long-term benefits of SHARP’s academically integrated approach. The difference in outcomes could lead to better self-management and potentially reduce asthma-related morbidity in children exposed to the SHARP curriculum.
Implications for Asthma Education
The study’s findings have significant implications for how asthma education is delivered to children. The success of SHARP suggests that integrating health education into the academic curriculum can lead to more sustained knowledge gains and improved reasoning skills. This approach leverages the established learning environment of the school and positions teachers as key facilitators of health education.
The study also underscores the importance of focusing on older elementary school children, a vulnerable group transitioning towards independent self-management. By equipping them with comprehensive knowledge and reasoning abilities, programs like SHARP can empower them to effectively manage their condition and minimize the impact of asthma on their lives. While limitations, such as the specific demographics of the study population and potential historical influences, need to be considered, the findings strongly support the effectiveness of the SHARP program.
Conclusion: A Sharper Understanding with SHARP
The comparative study provides compelling evidence that the SHARP program offers a more effective approach to asthma education than traditional non-academic programs. By embedding asthma education within the core curriculum, SHARP equips students with a deeper and more lasting understanding of their condition, potentially leading to improved health outcomes. The research effectively answers the question “what is the comparative of sharp” by demonstrating that SHARP leads to a comparatively sharper understanding of asthma in children. Future research should focus on broader implementation and long-term impact assessment of the SHARP program.
