Certified Asthma Educator - Pediatric Allergy & Pulmonary Medicine

Location

SAINT LOUIS, MO 63110

 Scheduled Hours

40

Position Summary

The Center for Pediatric Pulmonary Disease & Allergy (PPD&A) is seeking a Certified Asthma Educator (AE-C) to provide comprehensive, home-based asthma education and self-management support to pediatric patients and their families following emergency department (ED) visits for asthma at St. Louis Children’s Hospital (SLCH). This position is open to any healthcare professional eligible for AE-C certification under NBRC requirements.

St. Louis continues to experience asthma rates nearly three times the national average, with significantly higher ED visits and hospitalizations. In 2024, SLCH recorded over 2,100 asthma-related ED visits, underscoring the urgent need for improved asthma education and post-discharge support. Many caregivers struggle to manage complex asthma regimens at home, which often leads to repeat ED visits and hospital admissions.

To address this need, the Center is launching a new home-based asthma education program focused on bringing education directly into the home, ensuring that children and caregivers have the tools, understanding, and confidence to manage asthma effectively. This program bridges clinical expertise with real- world support to reduce preventable exacerbations and improves quality of life for children with asthma and their families.

The Asthma Educator will play a key role in this pilot initiative, collaborating with a small, dedicated team to develop and refine program processes during its early implementation phase. The educator’s primary responsibilities include conducting home visits—typically within four to seven days of a child’s ED discharge —to review discharge instructions, demonstrate proper medication and inhaler use, and provide education on environmental trigger management and symptom control.

The Asthma Educator will document all activities in the electronic health record, support accurate billing and contribute to program evaluation and quality improvement initiatives that promote long-term sustainability and improved patient outcomes.

We serve families in St. Louis communities that are predominantly African American. We are seeking candidates who have strong cultural competency and experience working effectively with these communities, and who can build trust and rapport with the families we serve.

This position requires early evening and some weekend hours to accommodate family schedules.

Job Description

Primary Duties & Responsibilities:

Home-Based Asthma Education

Contacts discharged families in a timely manner defined by the program, to schedule home education visit.

Delivers individualized asthma education in the home (and potential telehealth visits) for pediatric patients and families.

Teaches asthma management, medication use, inhaler and spacer technique, and environmental control strategies.

Reinforces personalized asthma action plans using demonstrations and teach-back methods.

Builds family confidence in daily asthma management and response to symptoms or exacerbations.

Program Coordination and Documentation

Documents all education sessions, assessments, and care plans in EPIC and program tracking systems.

Coordinates with primary care providers, pulmonologists, and other healthcare team members to ensure seamless care.

Manages scheduling and ensures timely completion of education visits and follow-up activities.

Maintains current knowledge of national asthma management guidelines and best practices.

Data Tracking and Program Evaluation

Collects and analyzes program metrics, including visit completion rates, patient outcomes, and follow-up utilization.

Monitors improvements in family self-management skills, reductions in emergency visits, and patient satisfaction.

Assists in preparing reports to support quality improvement, outcome tracking, and program evaluation.

Billing, Coding, and Quality Tracking

Supports accurate billing and reimbursements for home (and telehealth) asthma education and environmental assessments.

Utilizes EPIC documentation templates to ensure precise coding and quality data tracking.

Collaborates with BJC Healthcare to implement and monitor billing workflows.

Contributes to program sustainability through evaluation of reimbursement outcomes and scalability.

Collaboration and Continuous Improvement

Partners with clinical, administrative, and community teams to strengthen program delivery and engagement.

Participates in staff meetings, professional development, and training sessions to enhance skills and effectiveness.

Contributes to the development of educational materials, workflows, and best practices that improve program impact.

Perform other duties as assigned.

Working Conditions:

Job Location / Working Conditions

Normal office environment.

Patient care setting.

Physical Effort

Typically sitting at desk or table.

Typically bending, crouching, stooping.

Typically standing or walking.

Repetitive wrist, hand or finger movement.

Occasional lifting (<25 lbs).

Ability to move to on and off-campus locations.

Alternative work schedule as regular part of job (on-call, shifts, evening, weekends).

Equipment

Office equipment.

Operate a motor vehicle.

Clinical/diagnostic equipment.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all job duties performed by the personnel so classified. Management reserves the right to revise or amend duties at any time.

Required Qualifications

Education:

Bachelor’s degree or combination of education and/or experience may substitute for minimum education.

Certifications /Professional Licenses :

The list below may include all acceptable certifications, professional licenses and issuers. More than one credential, certification or professional license may be required depending on the role.

Basic Life Support - American Heart Association, Basic Life Support - American Red Cross, Certified Asthma Educator (AE-C) - American Association for Respiratory Care (AARC)

Work Experience:

Healthcare (2 Years)

Skills:

Not Applicable

Driver's License:

A driver's license and good driving record are required for this position.

More About This Job

Required Qualifications:

American Association for Respiratory Care - Certified Asthma Educator.

Basic Life Support certification must be obtained within one month of hire date.

Basic Life Support certification (Online BLS certifications, those without a skills assessment component, are not sufficient to meet the BLS requirements).

Travel with personal car to homes of St. Louis Children's Hospital patients to educate families on asthma care (travel reimbursement will be provided).

Preferred Qualifications:

• Certified Asthma Educator (AE-C) credential or eligibility to obtain certification (AE-C credential must be obtained within two months of hire date) or, if applicable, per Missouri Code of State Regulations a Missouri state certificate.
• Eligibility to obtain AE-C credential one must possess a current, active, unrestricted license or credential from the United States in one of the following: Nurse (RN, LPN); Respiratory Therapist (RRT, CRT); Pulmonary Function Technologist (RPFT, CPFT); Social Worker (CSW); Health Educator (CHES); Physical Therapist (PT); Occupational Therapist (OT); Emergency Medical Technician (EMT, AEMT); Paramedic; Speech Language Pathologist (CCC-SLP). For more information, please see Certified Asthma Educator (AE-C) - The National Board for Respiratory Care

Preferred Qualifications

• Education: No additional education unless stated elsewhere in the job posting.
• Certifications /Professional Licenses : Asthma Educator Specialist (AE-C) - The National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC)
• Work Experience: No additional work experience unless stated elsewhere in the job posting.
• Skills: Adaptability, Asthma Education, Asthma Management, Clinical Content Development, Clinical Documentation, Clinical Experience, Computer Literacy, Cross-Team Collaboration, Database Entry, Data Tracking, Detail-Oriented, Direct Patient Interaction, Effective Written Communication, Electronic Health Records (EHR), Finding Innovative Solutions, Health Care, Medical Billing and Coding, Microsoft Applications, Multicultural Environments, Oral Communications, Patient Care Advocacy, Patient Care Coordination, Patient Education, Quality Improvement Projects, Taking Initiative
• Grade
• C11