Reduction in the morbidity associated with asthma requires attention to several aspects of the behaviour of health professionals and patients, and to the interactions between these two groups. In this review, what has been learnt about health professional/patient communication and patient education (skills, settings and materials), lay and health professional liaison (including telephone helplines), patient education in low-income countries, the integration of patient education into clinical practice, health professional training and the implementation of guidelines, and the role of national asthma campaigns is drawn together. What changes in public policy would enhance asthma care, and whether the promotion of asthma self-management skills is cost effective are also considered. It is concluded that, although further research is necessary in many areas, well-educated health professionals who recognize the person with asthma as an individual, and who give advice about self-management, can significantly reduce the suffering and costs associated with asthma. Eur Respir J 2000; 16: 333±348.

This article defends the appropriateness of tobacco-free school policies as an effective tool toward ensuring young people develop into healthy and intellectually strong adults, and demonstrates how such a policy can be introduced into a school district. Health education efforts to eliminate tobacco use are widely considered more effective when carried out in concert with school policies and adult role models offering the consistent message that tobacco use is unhealthy and unacceptable. Studies indicate students who attend schools with strict smoking policies are less likely to begin smoking than students who attend schools without such policies. Through research, support, and guidance, the Colorado Tobacco-Free Schools and Communities Project successfully has assisted almost half the 176 school districts in Colorado to adopt such policies.

Reduction in the morbidity associated with asthma requires attention to several aspects of the behaviour of health professionals and patients, and to the interactions between these two groups. In this review, what has been learnt about health professional/patient communication and patient education (skills, settings and materials), lay and health professional liaison (including telephone helplines), patient education in low‐income countries, the integration of patient education into clinical practice, health professional training and the implementation of guidelines, and the role of national asthma campaigns is drawn together. What changes in public policy would enhance asthma care, and whether the promotion of asthma self‐management skills is cost effective are also considered. It is concluded that, although further research is necessary in many areas, well‐educated health professionals who recognize the person with asthma as an individual, and who give advice about self‐management, can significantly reduce the suffering and costs associated with asthma.