Effectiveness of a self-management enhancement program among adults with uncontrolled asthma: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract

People with uncontrolled asthma are faced with many difficulties as the disease progresses and self-management is one approach to improve their health outcomes. This randomized controlled trial aimed to test the effects of a self-management enhancement program on symptom control and quality of life among adults with uncontrolled asthma. The study was implemented from April to September 2018 at a tertiary care hospital in northeast Thailand. One hundred people were randomly assigned to the experimental (n = 50) and control groups (n = 50). The experimental group participated in a 6-week self-management enhancement program, whereas the control group received standard care. The outcomes were assessed at 12 weeks after the completion of the program. Questionnaires used were the Asthma Control Test and the Mini Asthma Quality of Life. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, paired t-tests, independent t-tests, and Mann-Whitney U tests. The results indicated that participants in the experimental group showed improvements in symptom control, as well as their quality of life, compared to before the program. After the program, they had a statistically significant better improvement in symptom control and quality of life when compared with the control group at 12 weeks. These findings suggest that the program for self-management can be used to improve symptom control and the quality of life among persons with uncontrolled asthma, but we suggest further testing with groups in other regions. Such an intervention could be directly beneficial to either nurses or other health care professionals to enhance health behaviors among people with uncontrolled asthma. Nurses need to be trained to provide information and motivate people with uncontrolled asthma to sustain their self-management efforts.