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Boston Asthma Initiative
3313 Washington Street
2nd floor
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
617-971-0863
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Our History
In 1997, the Jamaica Plain residents identified asthma and related environmental issues as a problem in their community. To address this problem, residents, representatives from community-based organizations, and representatives from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Children’s Hospital Boston, and Faulkner Hospitals collaborated to develop this initiative. From its inception, the Boston Asthma Initiative (BAI) has sought to address childhood asthma in the schools and in homes, while examining access to and quality of health care for children and adults living with asthma.
BAI has expanded its programs services beyond Jamaica Plain to include Roxbury, Dorchester and Mattapan. These four neighborhoods have been identified as having the highest rates of asthma in Boston, disproportionately affecting ethnic minority populations and children.
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On World Asthma Day: Two Boston Nonprofits Merged to Improve Asthma Resources Boston , MA . On World Asthma Day, the Boston Asthma Initiative (BAI), a ten-year old effort to reduce asthma morbidity and mortality in Boston , announced it would merge with ESAC, a 40-year-old Jamaica Plain based nonprofit, to improve resources and expand efforts to confront asthma cases across Boston . Since the late 1990s, the Boston Asthma Initiative has addressed the rising incidence of childhood asthma cases through: home visits where education and preventative measures are discussed; programs in schools to reduce exposure to asthma triggers; and an innovative swim program teaching children with asthma about prevention and the value of exercise. ESAC Executive Director Robert Pulster sees the merger of BAI as a natural extension of his organization's programs. “For forty years ESAC has helped residents of Boston build safe, sustainable communities. We have been at the forefront of preventing childhood lead poisoning and we see BAI's asthma prevention programs as a natural extension of that. Paul Shoemaker, chairman of the BAI Board of Directors, seconds that sentiment. “BAI has served hundreds of children and their families over the past ten years and like ESAC, we have a practical, effective approach to addressing problems; one that recognizes that only through community efforts will we reduce this critical health threat.” |
 Members of the Boards of ESAC and the Boston Asthma Initiative celebrate their new partnership Front: Emily Litonjua, Jennifer Allison, Maria Nieves & Paul Shoemaker Rear:Alan Sharaf, Edith Buhs, Robert Pulster. |