Gps Identify Problems With Asthma Care
GPs generally agree on the best ways to improve the care of asthma sufferers, but their efforts are often hampered by broader issues, according to research published in the current issue of the Medical Journal of Australia, to be released tomorrow.
At a time when less than 60 per cent of asthma management guideline standards are achieved, researchers asked GPs what they thought was needed to achieve best outcomes in people with asthma.
In a qualitative study of 34 metropolitan and 15 rural GPs, each attending one of six discussion groups, asthma education for patients and continuing professional education for GPs were nominated as major priorities.
Co-author of the study, Dr Jo Douglass, from the Department of Allergy, Immunology and Respiratory Medicine at the Alfred Hospital and Monash University, said other priorities included medication adherence, facilitating regular patient review, negotiating asthma management or treatment plans, making the correct diagnosis, increased remuneration and consultation time, and access to safer asthma medication.
Health promotion initiatives and increased public awareness were also priorities.
But Dr Douglass said translating guidelines into practice is made difficult by broader issues, such as improving adherence to medication, establishing a patient recall system, and finding the time required to provide asthma education and attend continuing medical education courses.
The authors suggested the use of practice nurses could help overcome some of these barriers.
The study showed GPs were unsure about using spirometers, either because of their cost or lack of confidence, and while asthma management treatment plans were a priority, written asthma action plans were not a high priority.
The Medical Journal of Australia is a publication of the Australian Medical Association.
CONTACT Dr Jo DOUGLASS 03 9207 1398 / 03 9276 2934
Judith TOKLEY, AMA Public Affairs, 0408 824 306 / 02 6270 5471