OBJECTIVE: Caring for a child with asthma can affect the parent's coping and well-being and coping strategies. This study examined the influence of a home-based asthma health education program on parental coping and quality of life. DESIGN: Randomized controlled non-blinded clinical trial. SETTING: Northern community pediatrician's office. PATIENTS: Families whose children, under the age of 11, had chronic stable asthma, and who presented to the pediatrician's office for continuing care; those with an acute exacerbation of asthma were excluded. INTERVENTIONS: Families were randomly assigned to receive either a single two-hour, standardized home-based asthma health education session or a booklet representing conventional care. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: One and three-months following the intervention, assessments were obtained for coping measured by Hymovich's Parent Perception Inventory (PPI), quality of life measured by the Pediatric Asthma Caregiver Quality of Life Questionnaire (PACQLQ) and change in asthma measured by the Caregiver Perception of Change (CPC) survey. RESULTS: Forty families were recruited and randomized; baseline characteristics were similar between groups. At the final follow-up, reduction in parental need for asthma information (p = 0.04), reduction in parental concerns (p = 0.02) and increased use of coping strategies (p = 0.04) were observed in the home-based care group. Improvement was noted in the parent's perception of their child's asthma in the home-based asthma education group (p = 0.01). Quality of life as measured by the PACQLQ remained unchanged over the intervention period (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest the use of a one-time, flexible, home-based intervention to assist families caring for children with asthma should be considered and appears effective.
With permission from Excerpta Medica Inc.

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