The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 278 No 7442 p272
10 March 2007

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Asthma first aid plans for children in Scotland

Children in Scotland who have asthma should be given first aid asthma action plans that explain what to do if they have an asthma attack. This is one of a number of recommendations made in a joint report published this week by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland, Asthma UK Scotland and the Scottish Executive Health Department.

First aid asthma action plan card recommended for children in Scotland

The three organisations were involved in a three-year project that looked at ways to improve asthma care in Scotland. It started by promoting the use of personal asthma action plans, which explain how the patient’s asthma should be managed, including things like when to seek help if symptoms deteriorate.

From this, first aid asthma action plans for children under 12 years were developed. The report recommends that these plans should be made available through pharmacies, GP surgeries, schools and nurseries. It also calls for greater use of personal asthma action plans in all age groups.

Other initiatives developed through the project include the production of educational resources about asthma for health professionals and the provision of specialist asthma training courses for nurses.