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Quality improvement package for asthma management |
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It is internationally recommended that asthma be managed with a 4 step standardised approach to diagnosis and treatment (Global Initiative for Asthma - GINA). 1 Dosage of medicine is adjusted to match symptoms and lung function. Patients who respond well to treatment can then control their asthma using less medicine.
From the GINA guidelines, The Union produced an adapted version for low and middle-income settings. 2 The Union uses low-cost essential medicines in its 4 step approach, with a package of technical measures for asthma management in the general health services.
Implementing The Union's Asthma Guide has been shown in low and middle-income settings to reduce the severity of asthma for the majority of patients.3 This also stops money being wasted. Far less medicine is needed and the extremely costly emergency visits and hospitalisations are almost eliminated.
- Global strategy for asthma management and prevention. Bethesda, MD: National Institutes of Health. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Revised 2006. www.ginasthma.com
- Aït-Khaled N, Enarson DA, Chiang C-Y, Marks G, Bissell K. Management of asthma: a guide to the essentials of good clinical practice. 3rd edition. Paris, France: International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 2008.
- Aït-Khaled N, Enarson DA et al. Treatment outcome of asthma after one year follow-up in health centres of several developing countries. Int J Tuberc Lung Dis. 2006 Aug;10(8):911-6.
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Last updated on Tuesday, 16 February 2010 09:32 |
