Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago

Services Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago Offers

Through programmatic efforts, RHAMC implements a multi-pronged agenda to:

o Reverse the asthma epidemic in Chicago.
o Raise awareness and improve patient care for those with respiratory illness including asthma, lung cancer and COPD.
o Reduce tobacco use and exposure to second hand smoke.
o Fund local and national research to find cures and improve treatments.

RHAMC's community outreach involves targeted projects in Chicago communities such as Englewood, Woodlawn, Greater Grand Crossing, and Humboldt Park. In these projects, our Community Health Educators visit homes to address indoor environmental concerns and educate about proper asthma management.

We have recently developed a school-based asthma curriculum based upon NHLBI guidelines, and targeted to multicultural youth, Fight Asthma Now (FAN). In addition, Courage to Quit, a free smoking cessation program, helps people quit smoking over the course of six sessions, and the COPD Initiative hosts an annual Living Better Together COPD Conference for patients with COPD.

RHAMC also offers continuing medical education for physicians, nurses, and respiratory therapists through monthly lectures, annual conferences, and grand rounds.

Our advocacy initiatives encourage adoption and implementation of policies to promote lung health and raise awareness of the health and economic burdens of lung disease and air pollution. Finally, Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago is committed to funding lung disease research at local medical institutions. We currently support five investigator-initiated research projects.