Pharmacists can help asthma management
Community pharmacists can help people with asthma better manage their condition, Australian research presented in two abstracts at the European
Respiratory Society congress in Munich this week has shown.
In the first study of 351 patients, researchers found that patients offered
a disease management service — involving asthma severity assessment,
spirometry, inhaler technique, lifestyle issues, goal setting and doctor
referral — saw improvement in adherence to preventer medicines,
quality of life, asthma knowledge and perceived asthma control scores,
and a decrease in salbutamol use.
The proportion of patients with correct inhaler technique and owning
a written self-management plan was higher for patients in the intervention
group than for those receiving standard care. The programme was conducted
across 50 pharmacies over a six-month period.
The second study looked at 91 asthma patients recruited to a nine-month
patient-centred intervention programme or standard care across 20 pharmacies.
There were no significant differences in asthma control scores between
the two groups. Over time, medication adherence and quality of life improved
more significantly for patients in the intervention group than those
on standard care.
Patients reported the goal-setting process and improvements in their
knowledge about asthma and its triggers as major benefits, say the authors. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal
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