Over the years, chronic diseases such as Asthma have been in the limelight and have been the cause of some heated debates. Asthma is a disease which causes the airways to constrict and at the same time swell making them produce extra mucus. Episodes of asthma attacks are characterized by difficulty in breathing, shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing. In some cases, Asthma can be manifested as a mild disease while in other scenarios, it can be a life-threatening ordeal rendering an individual weak even to carry out their daily activities. As a disease, Asthma has proved to have a serious socioeconomic impact on the society and mainly the patients together with their patients. The main purpose of this essay will be to determine whether the self-management of asthma in general practice is effective.
What is important to note is that the most common cause of this chronic disease is the lack of compliance with the set guidelines prescribed for the early diagnosis and treatment of Asthma. The early diagnosis of Asthma is crucial in its treatment. Additionally, it is evident that one of the factors that impact the control of Asthma in the society is the low standards of living. Other factors include the underuse or overuse of asthma medication.
The experiment carried out to this effect involved a randomized controlled trial. The experiment lasted for two years due to the follow-ups that were done on the patients. The total number of patients included in the test was 214. All the patients had to undergo a lung test at intervals of 6 months. The main method used in the study was stratified cluster randomization. All the patients who had asthma aged between 16 and 60 were identified. The study individuals were then introduced to the self-management program whereby major symptoms such as increased dyspnea, bronchodilator use and yellow zone were identified.
From the results, it is clear that self-management proved to be of great importance in treating Asthma. Out of the total 214 patients, 72% (74/104 weeks responded) positively to self-management as an intermittent treatment of Asthma which uses inhaled corticosteroids (Thoonen et al., 2003). Therefore, it is evident that the burden that Asthma as a form of illness places on patients can be greatly reduced through the intervention of self-management as compared to the normal treatment that is afforded under the Dutch care.
When it comes to nursing education, self-management should not be classified as an optional extra. It is imperative that nursing professionals possess the requisite skills required to afford asthma patients personalized care and advice geared towards optimizing the use of self-management as an intermittent treatment for asthma. Additionally, it is critical that education about self-management should be reinforced at all nursing education levels through a carefully curated asthma self-management action plan which will state the clear guidelines of the steps to be taken in the case of an Asthma patient scenario.
The main educational aim of this study will be geared towards providing summarized evidence that supports the use of self-management in the treatment of asthma. The study will also provide medical practitioners with a practical approach which can be adopted in providing self-management care to asthma patients while at the same time act as an implementation strategy for self-management.
- Thoonen, B. P. A., Schermer, T. R. J., Van Den Boom, G., Molema, J., Folgering, H., Akkermans, R. P., … Van Schayck, C. P. (2003). Self-management of asthma in general practice, asthma control and quality of life: a randomised controlled trial. Thorax, 58(1), 30-36.