Education and management of asthma patients is a very important part of asthma control. Asthma education can significantly improve asthma patients’ awareness of the disease, better cooperate with treatment and prevention, improve patients’ compliance with prevention and treatment, achieve the purpose of reducing asthma attacks, maintaining long-term stability, improving quality of life, and reducing medical expenses.
Publicity and education content.
(1) Believe that asthma can be effectively controlled through long-term, standardized treatment;
(2) Understand the various factors that trigger asthma, identify specific triggering factors and ways to avoid them, such as reducing allergen inhalation, avoiding strenuous exercise, and avoiding drugs that can trigger asthma, etc., taking into account the specific situation of each patient;
(3) To gain a preliminary understanding of the nature and pathogenesis of asthma;
(4) Be familiar with the aura of asthma attack and the corresponding management methods;
(5) To understand the method of measuring and recording peak flow rate and to encourage the keeping of asthma diary;
(6) Learn to perform simple emergency self-treatment in case of asthma attack;
(7) To have a preliminary understanding of the characteristics and correct usage of commonly used asthma medications, and to understand the adverse effects of various medications and how to reduce and avoid these adverse effects;
(8) To correctly master the techniques of using various quantitative nebulizer inhalation devices;
(9) To develop a preliminary treatment plan according to the degree of the disease jointly by the doctor and the patient;
(10) Recognize the signs of worsening asthma and know the appropriate actions to take at this time;
(11) Know when to go to the hospital or to the emergency room;
(12) Understand the role of psychological factors in the development and treatment of asthma and acquire the necessary psychological adjustment techniques.
Goals of long-term management.
(1) To achieve good compliance with control measures in patients with asthma;
(2) To control and eliminate the relevant symptoms, including nocturnal asymptomatic, as much as possible;
(3) To prevent and control asthma attacks so that the number of visits to the hospital is minimized;
(4) To keep lung function as close to normal as possible;
(5) Ensure that patients can participate in normal activities, including sports, and minimize time missed from work and school due to illness;
(6) Control the disease with fewer or no short-acting β2 agonists;
(7) Minimize the incidence of adverse drug reactions, preferably without adverse reactions;
(8) To minimize irreversible airflow limitation in asthmatics;
(9) reduce the chance of sudden death in asthmatic patients.