Pediatric Pulmonary Center
University of Washington, Seattle, WA

History Overview of the Pediatric Pulmonary Centers
Nationally and in Washington State

1967

• Thirteen Pediatric Pulmonary Centers established nation-wide to provide specialized care to children with lung disease.
• The Division of Chronic Disease and the National Regional Medical Program funds the Centers.

1973

• The Bureau of Maternal and Child Health takes over support of the PPCs.
• Focus changes to multi-disciplinary teams providing comprehensive coordinated care based at regional university-affiliated referral centers.
• To provide multidisciplinary training, the PPCs add faculty members from the schools of nursing, respiratory therapy, nutrition, and social work.

1980s

• A pediatric pulmonologist joins the PPC faculty and the focus shifts from the newborn to children of all ages with acute and chronic lung disease.
• PPC faculty develop models for multidisciplinary care that maximize clinical and functional outcome for these children and their families.
• Comprehensive care shifts to the home with increasing use of home care equipment and nursing agencies throughout the Washington State.
• Emphasis on regional linkages with other Title V agencies.
• Outreach clinics in Washington, Alaska, and Idaho formalized.
• Standards of care devised for health care providers, such as public health nurses, in the community, schools, and in daycare settings.
• Empahsis on collaborative research and multidisciplinary task forces such as the Asthma Task Force with personnel from the MCH programs in pulmonary, nursing, adolescent medicine, and public health.

1990s

• PPC themes are:
  • leadership
  • legislative advocacy for children with special health care needs
  • primary community-based care of children with chronic handicapping conditions
• PPC is charged with improving systems of care for this population of children.
  • Outcome research is needed to evaluate systems of care in a changing health care environment.
• Adapting to changes in health care, the Seattle PPC focuses on training primary care providers to safely manage increasingly severe and complex diseases.
• Graduate training continues as do specialty clinical services and outreach programs.

2000s

• PPC continues to focus on multidisciplinary leadership
• PPC is concerned with reducing disparities in health care for:
  • rural areas
  • low income & uninsured families
  • ethnic minorities