This Study Compared an in Home Asthma Management Program Provided by Nurses or Respiratory Therapist

The University of Texas System (UT)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Asthma

Treatments: Behavioral: In-home asthma management program (AMP) provided by nurses; Behavioral: In-home asthma management program (AMP) provided by respiratory therapists

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT00639847

989-0030-090

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study compared an in-home asthma management program provided by nurses or respiratory therapists to see if those receiving program had fewer hospitalizations, clinic and emergency room visits and higher levels of satisfaction and health related quality of life.

Full description

Background: Disease management may improve outcomes and reduce cost. We compared an in-home asthma management program (AMP) delivered by respiratory therapists (RTs) or nurses (RNs) to standard care (SC) in 159 adults with moderate to severe asthma to determine the effect on health care utilization (HCU), patient satisfaction (PS) and health related quality of life (HRQOL).

Methods: This single center, prospective trial randomized subjects, age 18-64, to three groups: SC, AMP-RT or AMP-RN. Outcomes at six-months were HCU, cost, pulmonary function, symptoms, environmental assessment, asthma self-management, HRQOL (SF-36; St. Georges Respiratory Questionnaire [SGRQ]) and PS. Frequencies were compared using chi 2; all other variables were compared using ANOVA with a post-hoc test.

Enrollment: 159 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 64 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Adult patients (age 18-64 years) treated in the ED or hospitalized for an acute exacerbation of asthma at the university teaching hospital were invited to participate.

Exclusion criteria

• Included other pulmonary disorders or diagnosis of co-morbid disease which was disabling in nature.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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159 participants in 3 patient groups

group 1

No Intervention group

Description:

this is the standard of care control group. The control group will be instructed to return to their regular physicians for routine follow up at a time to be specified by the physician.

Group 2

Active Comparator group

Description:

Group 2 will receive routine home visits from nurses provided by a home health care agency.

Treatment:

Behavioral: In-home asthma management program (AMP) provided by nurses

Group 3

Active Comparator group

Description:

In-home asthma management program (AMP) provided by respiratory therapists. The AMP included asthma education (medications use, monitoring, triggers, steps to manage asthma attacks), demonstration and training (peak flow meter use, MDI and nebulizer use, asthma diary), home environment assessment and suggestions for environmental changes (mattress covers, control of dust, pets, fumes, cleaning materials, cock roach control, etc.)

Treatment:

Behavioral: In-home asthma management program (AMP) provided by respiratory therapists