A multilevel perspective on goals, barriers, and facilitators of school-based asthma management

BACKGROUND

School based asthma care is being increasingly used to combat uncontrolled pediatric asthma.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of these secondary analyses was to explore multi-level perspectives regarding school-based asthma medical management for inner city, school-aged children with poor asthma control.

METHODS

Sixty-six participants from two large U.S. urban school districts and key stakeholders participated in 1:1 interviews and focus groups. Participants were selected from across the asthma care community (children/caregivers, school personnel, nurses, pharmacists, healthcare providers, and administrators/insurers). Qualitative and descriptive techniques were used to analyze data.

RESULTS

Goals: Children/caregivers prioritized living a normal active life with few asthma worries. Other stakeholders prioritized reducing student's asthma related emergency room visits and lost learning time. Facilitators: Continuity of care, strong relationships between care community members, and incentivizers were commonly suggested facilitators. School-based asthma management was viewed as a strong facilitator, particularly in the presence of a full-time school nurse. Barriers: Four themes were identified. (1) Greater systems and policy support for asthma management is needed in general, and at school in particular. (2) Overburdened families and systems often operate in crisis-mode, and asthma management is often not a priority until crisis is reached. (3) Discordance and distrust between members of the asthma care community can hinder shared asthma management. (4) Better communication is needed at all levels to improve care.

CONCLUSION

Moving away from a crisis-based approach to asthma management for high-risk children will require increased systemic support for proactive asthma care and optimized communication within the asthma care community.

Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02770903.2021.2018704.

A mixed-methods analysis of younger adults' perceptions of asthma, self-management, and preventive care: "This isn't helping me none"

BACKGROUND

Young adults (ages 18-44) have increased emergency department use for asthma and poor adherence to medications. The objective of this mixed-methods study was to understand experiences with and approaches to managing asthma, of which little is known in this age group.

METHODS

Surveys (Asthma Control Questionnaire, Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire) and 1:1 semi-structured interviews were used to explore experiences with asthma, symptoms, self-management behaviours, and relationship to asthma control and quality of life. Qualitative data were analysed using content analysis techniques. Descriptive statistics and bivariate correlations were used to examine distributive characteristics and associations between variables.

RESULTS

Forty urban adults participated (mean age 32.7 ± 6.2, 1σ). Coughing was reported nearly 46% more often than wheezing, with 42.5% (17/40) coughing until the point of vomiting most days. Most participants delayed using medication for symptoms due to misperceptions about inhalers. Higher symptom frequency and worse asthma control were associated with greater use of non-pharmacologic symptom management strategies (r = 0.645, P < .001; r = 0.360, P = .022, respectively). Five themes were identified regarding young adults experiences with asthma: (1) having asthma means being limited and missing out on life; (2) health care for asthma is burdensome, and other things are more important; (3) there is not enough personal benefit in medical interactions to make preventive care worthwhile; (4) there are insufficient support and education about asthma for adults; and (5) people normalize chronic symptoms over time and find ways of coping that fit with their lifestyle.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE

Young adults may tolerate symptoms without using quick-relief medication or seeking preventive care. Increasing engagement with preventive services will require decreasing perceived burdens and increasing the personal benefits of care. Evaluating for non-pharmacologic approaches to managing symptoms and asthma-related coughing may identify uncontrolled asthma. Enhanced training for clinicians in patient-centric asthma care may be needed.

Going mobile with primary care: smartphone-telemedicine for asthma management in young urban adults (TEAMS)

BACKGROUND

The majority of adults with persistent asthma have chronically uncontrolled disease and interventions to improve outcomes are needed. We evaluated the efficacy, feasibility, and acceptability of a multi-component smartphone-telemedicine program (TEAMS) to deliver asthma care remotely, support provider adherence to asthma management guidelines, and improve patient outcomes.

METHODS

TEAMS utilized: (1) remote symptom monitoring, (2) nurse-led smartphone-telemedicine with self-management training for patients, and (3) Electronic medical record-based clinical decision support software. Adults aged 18-44 (N = 33) and primary care providers (N = 4) were recruited from a safety-net practice in Upstate New York. Asthma control, quality of life, and FEV₁ were measured at 0, 3 and 6 months. Acceptability was assessed via survey and end-of-study interviews. Paired t-test and mixed effects modeling were used to evaluate the effect of the intervention on asthma outcomes.

RESULTS

At baseline, 80% of participants had uncontrolled asthma. By 6-months, 80% classified as well-controlled. Improvements in control and quality of life were large (d = 1.955, d = 1.579). FEV_%pred increased 4.2% (d = 1.687) with the greatest gain in males, smokers, and lower educational status. Provider adherence to national guidelines increased from 43.3% to 86.7% (CI = 22.11-64.55) and patient adherence to medication increased from 45.58% to 85.29% (CI = 14.79-64.62). Acceptability was 95.7%; In follow up interviews, 29/30 patients and all providers indicated TEAMS worked better than usual care, supported effective self-management, and reduced symptoms over time, which led to greater self-efficacy and motivation to manage asthma.

DISCUSSION

Based on these findings, we conclude that smartphone telemedicine could substantially improve clinical asthma management, adherence to guidelines, and patient outcomes.

Development and preliminary results of an Electronic Medical Record (EMR)-integrated smartphone telemedicine program to deliver asthma care remotely

INTRODUCTION

Technology-based interventions that can function within real-world practice and improve outcomes without increasing provider burden are needed, yet few successfully cross the research-to-practice divide. This paper describes the process of developing a clinically integrated smartphone-telemedicine program for adults with asthma and results from proof-of-concept testing.

METHODS

We used a contextually grounded intervention development approach and May's implementation theory to design the intervention, with emphasis on systems capabilities and stakeholder needs. The intervention incorporated symptom monitoring by smartphone, smartphone telemedicine visits and self-management training with a nurse, and clinical decision-support software, which provided automated calculations of asthma severity, control and step-wise therapy. Seven adults (aged 18-40 y) engaged in a 3-month beta-test. Asthma outcomes (control, quality of life, FEV₁) and healthcare utilisation patterns were measured at baseline and end-of-study.

RESULTS

Each participant averaged four telemedicine visits (94% patient satisfaction). All participants had uncontrolled asthma at baseline; end-of-study 5/7 classified as well-controlled. Mean asthma control improved 1.55 points (CI = 0.59-2.51); quality of life improved 1.91 points (CI = 0.50-3.31), FEV₁ percent predicted increased 14.86% (CI = -3.09-32.80): effect sizes of d = 1.16, 1.09, and 0.96, respectively. Preventive healthcare utilisation increased significantly (1.86 visits/year vs. 0.28/year prior, CI 0.67-2.47) as did prescriptions for controller medications (9.29 prescriptions/year vs. 1.57 prescriptions/year, CI 4.85-10.58).

DISCUSSION

Smartphone telemedicine may be an effective means to improve outcomes and deliver asthma care remotely. However, careful attention to systems capabilities and stakeholder acceptability is needed to ensure successful integration with practice.Clinical Trials registration #: NCT03648203.