Nurse visits improve asthma care
Nurses who make home visits to asthmatic children can help prevent more than half of them from having to receive more serious treatment for their condition, a study has found.
Researchers organised for a nurse-led hospital visit followed by a home visit to look at allergen exposure. They found that when asthma nurses visited children at home to identify possible asthma triggers, 84 per cent of families were taking inadequate steps to avoid house dust mites and in almost a quarter of homes medication was not easily available or was out-of-date.
The main causes for poor control of children's asthma were psychosocial factors in 59 per cent of families, and passive or active smoking in 25 per cent.
The nurses found potentially modifiable factors in 79 per cent of the children's cases. Following their recommendations, it was unnecessary for 55 per cent of children to receive more serious treatment.
The study, 'The importance of nurse-led home visits in the assessment of children with problematic asthma', is published this month in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood.
Andrew Bush, professor of paediatric respirology, who led the study with Marcella Bracken-Hall, children's respiratory nurse specialist, both at the Royal Brompton Hospital, said, 'The findings, which can also be applied to childcare settings, highlight the real importance of getting the basics right. Busy families can easily overlook if children are taking their medications correctly or if they are out of date'
Erica Evans, lead asthma nurse at Asthma UK, said, 'Even simple changes at home can make a big difference to children's quality of life. We know that sticking to a management plan, contact with a doctor or asthma nurse and avoiding known triggers can all play an important part.'
