BACKGROUND: Adherence to self-management in asthma is poor. AIM: To investigate the effect of disease-unspecific motivational training on self-management adherence in addition to asthma-specific patient education. METHODS: We randomized patients with partly controlled asthma to asthma education, with or without the Zurich Resource Model (ZRM) training. Main elements of the ZRM training are development of action-oriented personal goals and activation of resources to achieve and practice them in daily life. The primary outcome was adherence to self-monitoring and to a written personal action plan during three months. Secondary outcomes included patient-reported self-efficacy. RESULTS: As control patients (n = 30) were younger, mostly male and had better asthma control compared with the intervention group (n = 30), we adjusted the analyses for these imbalances. Both groups showed excellent adherence to self-monitoring over three months (27 patients (90.0%) in intervention and 25 patients (83.3%) in control group, adjusted odds ratio 1.28 (0.24 to 6.78), p = 0.78)). Patients in the ZRM group tended to adjust their medication more often (median 36% days with action (IQR 11 to 62%)) than control patients (9% (0 to 43), p = 0.18). In both groups, actions were rarely in accordance with the action plan (median 20% of actions appropriate (IQR 0 to 37) in intervention and 11% (IQR 0 to 56) in control group, p = 0.92). After three months, self-efficacy was significantly better with ZRM (adjusted difference on self-efficacy scale 2.31, 95% CI 0.31 to 4.31, p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Unspecific self-management training had no short-term effect on self-management adherence in asthma patients. Self-efficacy improved, but it is uncertain whether this translates into better long-term outcomes.

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