The start of the school year is busy enough without the added concern about your child’s asthma striking them in the classroom or playground.

But that’s just the time when kids are most at risk of asthma flare-ups, with a spike in asthma attacks and hospital visits happening during the first few weeks of the school term every year.

When children return to classrooms, stress, a change of environment or allergens, and less strict asthma management over the holidays can trigger asthma symptoms. New classmates can also bring a new batch of colds and flu, which is a risk factor for asthma flare-ups.

What you can do

At home:

• Talk with your doctor about updating your child’s written asthma action plan
• Get your child back into their asthma routine before school starts, make sure they take their preventer medications every day if prescribed
• Ask your pharmacist to check your child is using their puffer properly or visit our How-to Video library
• Have a check-up before the school year or sports lessons start
• Pack a spare reliever puffer and spacer in your child’s school bag, checking that the puffer isn’t empty or out of date.

At school:

• Make sure your child feels comfortable asking for help or telling their teacher if they are getting asthma symptoms
• Give the school and/or childcare a copy of your child’s asthma action plan and tell teachers and staff if your child needs help using their puffer
• Talk to the school about asthma triggers and find out if staff have training on how to recognise and respond to asthma symptoms.

Back to school checklist:

To help your kids enjoy a happy and healthy start to the school year, check out our back to school checklist: