Development of an asthma disease management program in a children's hospital

Economic Evidence for US Asthma Self-Management Education and Home-Based Interventions

The health and economic burden of asthma in the United States is substantial. Asthma self-management education (AS-ME) and home-based interventions for asthma can improve asthma control and prevent asthma exacerbations, and interest in health care-public health collaboration regarding asthma is increasing. However, outpatient AS-ME and home-based asthma intervention programs are not widely available; economic sustainability is a common concern. Thus, we conducted a narrative review of existing literature regarding economic outcomes of outpatient AS-ME and home-based intervention programs for asthma in the United States. We identified 9 outpatient AS-ME programs and 17 home-based intervention programs with return on investment (ROI) data. Most programs were associated with a positive ROI; a few programs observed positive ROIs only among selected populations (eg, higher health care utilization). Interpretation of existing data is limited by heterogeneous ROI calculations. Nevertheless, the literature suggests promise for sustainable opportunities to expand access to outpatient AS-ME and home-based asthma intervention programs in the United States. More definitive knowledge about how to maximize program benefit and sustainability could be gained through more controlled studies of specific populations and increased uniformity in economic assessments.

Developing a risk stratification model for predicting future health care use in asthmatic children

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have stratified pediatric asthma patients for risk of future exacerbation and/or health care use, but most incorporate multiple clinical parameters.

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether historical acute care visits (ACVs) alone could predict risk of future health care use.

METHODS

Children seen for asthma in an outpatient visit during a 3-year period were identified. The number of ACVs in the 12 months before and after the outpatient visit was determined. Logistic regression models were used to determine the odds of a future ACV. Models were adjusted for age, sex, race, and insurance status.

RESULTS

Of 28,047 outpatient visits, 21,099 (75.2%) had no historical ACVs. The probability of a future ACV increased from 30% with one historical ACV to 87% with 5 or more historical ACVs. Outpatient visits with one historical ACV had significantly higher odds of a future ACV compared with those with no historical ACVs (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 3.60; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.14-4.12; P < .001). The OR increased with each additional historical ACV to an adjusted OR of 58.71 (95% CI, 24.34-141.61; P < .001) with 5 or more historical ACVs. Outpatient visits with 5 or more historical ACVs represented only 1.1% of the study sample but accounted for a higher mean number of future ACVs.

CONCLUSION

The historical count of ACVs was predictive of future ACVs. A significant increase in the probability of future ACVs was observed with each additional historical visit, effectively stratifying risk by the historical visit count. Notably, a small group of patients accounted for a disproportionate number of future ACVs.

A medication assessment tool to evaluate adherence to medication guideline in asthmatic children

OBJECTIVE

Asthma is one of the commonest causes of morbidity and mortality in childhood. The goals of the present study were to design a valid medication assessment tool for evaluating the quality of medication use according to recommendations of updated asthma guidelines for children aged from 5 to 12 years, and to quantify adherence to guideline recommendations.

SETTING

Two primary care settings in Scotland, UK.

METHODS

Recommendations related to the long-term management of asthmatic children in the British Thoracic Society/Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network and Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines were identified and corresponding criteria were created. These criteria were incorporated to generate an assessment tool named MAT ASTHMA-PAED. Two phases of field-testing were undertaken and the tool was also subject to examination by a focus group of specialist practitioners. Thereafter, MAT ASTHMA-PAED was modified accordingly.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

Applicability and adherence to each criterion and overall adherence to the MAT ASTHMA-PAED.

RESULTS

The MAT ASTHMA-PAED field-testing was undertaken in two primary care practices in Scotland, United Kingdom and 77 asthmatic children were recruited. Results of the pilot study field-testing showed a high overall adherence of 70.0 % (95 % CI: 58.7-81.3 %) to the guidelines. Low adherence (<50 %) was seen for 4 criteria, whereas 8 criteria were considered high-adherence criteria (>70 %). The final MAT ASTHMA-PAED comprised of 25 criteria was produced based on the results of field testing and the opinions from the focus group.

CONCLUSION

Although high utility of MAT ASTHMA-PAED criteria was found, there were gaps in the implementation of certain recommendations, particularly in relation to demonstrated satisfactory technique of inhaler. Moreover, further studies assessing the use of oral steroids and exercise-induced asthma, and wider implementation of MAT ASTHMA-PAED are required.

A matched-cohort evaluation of a bedside asthma intervention for patients hospitalized at a large urban children's hospital

Emergency care and hospitalizations account for 36% of asthma-related medical expenses for children. National asthma guidelines emphasize the need for asthma self-management education at multiple points of care, including the hospital, to help prevent acute exacerbations. The integration of a bedside asthma education program into discharge planning at a busy urban children's hospital aimed to reduce repeat emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations by educating the community's highest-risk children and their families about asthma. A trained respiratory professional provided 45 minutes of individualized bedside education to families at the hospital and one follow-up support phone call within 3 weeks after discharge. Children receiving the intervention were matched to a control group of children not receiving the intervention by age and 2 markers of past utilization using data obtained from hospital records. Repeat ED utilization was analyzed using a Cox proportional hazards model controlling for sex, residence, race or ethnicity, and year. Compared to 698 matched controls, no significant improvement was observed in the 698 intervention participants or any subgroups followed for 12 months after the intervention.

Outcome measures for asthma disease management

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Many interventions have been undertaken in managing asthma in a population-based framework. The identification of successful interventions would guide policy implementation to improve outcomes in patient morbidity and mortality and healthcare costs.

RECENT FINDINGS

Several studies have focussed on emergency room interventions in asthma management. Many support the existence of the "teachable moment" to lead to interventions that are effective. Other popular interventions are community-based educational programmes, targeting clinician and patient behavior modification. In some cases, it is unclear how these interventions impact patient-specific outcomes such as quality of life, symptom-free days, or missed days of school or work as these were not measured. Most studies separate patients on the basis of age (adults versus children), adding yet another level of complexity to the development of useful interventions.

SUMMARY

Several of the interventions failed to show a significant improvement of patient-centered asthma outcomes when they were measured. This was despite an improvement in surrogate measures, such as attendance of follow-up appointments. Many studies did not (or were not designed to) show a durable response. Further research is needed to understand this chronic disease and devise effective interventions with appropriate outcomes for measuring their effectiveness.

Modification of provider behavior to achieve improved asthma outcomes

Despite an abundance of scientific evidence supporting the use of guidelines, adherence to asthma practice guidelines by physicians generally is low, regardless of provider and patient characteristics. As a result, scientific information, obtained with great effort and at huge expense, is not being translated into clinical practice. To remedy this, we developed a disease management program that emphasizes alteration of provider behavior using operant conditioning. We did this by placing asthma educators in private offices for up to 8 weeks. The educators used a combination of problem-based learning, role modeling, and operant conditioning with positive reinforcement to affect behavior change. As a result of these behavior changes, by the end of 8 weeks the cost to treat asthma patients decreased, despite an increase in the cost of medications. We concluded that behavior-oriented programs targeted at provider offices can lead to improved asthma care while reducing costs.