Trial of an Asthma Education Program in an Inner-City Pediatric Emergency Department

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of an asthma education and management intervention, offered as part of an emergency department (ED) visit, on functional severity, use of asthma controller medication, and risk of needing crisis care. Designed as a randomized, controlled clinical trial, Medicaid-insured children aged 2 years to 18 years were seen in an inner-city hospital ED for acute asthma. In the intervention group, the adult accompanying the child received basic asthma education, a written asthma management plan (illustrated by zones colored green, yellow, and red), and prescriptions for both quick-relief and long-term control medication as part of the ED visit. The control group received routine care. Functional severity of asthma was assessed at baseline and at 1 month after the intervention. Medicaid claims data were used to determine frequency of asthma medication dispensing and dates of hospital-based events (ED visits and hospital admissions) during the 6 months after the i...