New asthma care resources released

A 20-page quick reference guide and a comprehensive 27-page resource devoted solely to correct inhaler use are now available for GPs and other primary healthcare professionals to better support the 2.8 million Australians who experience asthma.
 
The National Asthma Council has just released its new quick reference guide and Inhaler technique for people with asthma or COPD, synthesising the significant updates published in September last year in the Australian Asthma Handbook.
 
Key among the several new recommendations for GPs is a shift away from short-acting beta agonist (SABA)-only treatment for adolescents and adults, such as the blue puffers.
 
The new quick reference guide offers a step-by-step control-based approach to asthma management in adults and adolescents, including tables detailing options and dosing regimens for anti-inflammatory reliever therapy (AIR-only) and maintenance-and-reliever therapy (MART).
 
Chair of RACGP Specific Interests Respiratory Medicine, and Future of Asthma group member, Dr Kerry Hancock, told newsGP the quick reference guide is ‘a very comprehensive mini handbook’ that would save GPs valuable consultation time.
 
‘To have it all together in one information paper is really good,’ she said.
 
‘It’s all in the online Australian Asthma Handbook, but you have to go searching for it; someone like me who goes into it all the time, I know where to find information, but if you’re a busy GP seeing patients at the time, you don’t want to go searching for it.’
 
Clinical Associate Professor Debbie Rigby, who is the National Asthma Council Clinical Executive Lead, said with asthma guidelines and treatment regimens becoming more complex, updating the quick reference guide for primary care health professionals is important.
 
She describes the 27-page Inhaler technique for people with asthma or COPD tool, featuring illustrations, photos and checklists for every inhaler, as a ‘vital resource for busy GPs’.
 
‘It is concerning that most patients with asthma or COPD do not use their inhalers properly, and most have not had their technique checked or corrected by a health professional,’ she said.
 
‘The inhaler only works if it reaches the lungs properly and even small technique changes can make a big difference to asthma control and prevent flare-ups.’
 
She encourages GPs to use teach-back methods with patients to reinforce correct techniques and regimens.
 
The guide also features useful prompts for GPs to train patients and carers in correct inhaler technique, such as ‘watch, don’t just ask’, ‘show, don’t just tell’ and ‘repeat, don’t just prescribe or dispense’.
 
‘Evidence shows that inhaler technique improves most when patients are activated rather than simply instructed once or told to read the instructions,’ Clinical Associate Professor Rigby said.
 
‘Doctors should check inhaler technique at every opportunity, and the PBS requires that inhaler technique is assessed prior to stepping up a patient’s medication regimen.’
 
Dr Hancock said the inhaler guide, which includes checklists for all currently available inhalers, is ‘a wonderful resource to have at one’s fingertips’ when seeing patients with asthma or COPD.
 
While both resources are available to download or print, Dr Hancock suggests GPs downloading the PDFs to their computer desktops to have them easily on hand.
 
‘Everything you need for a consultation is probably going to be in there, and if you need to be reminded about “what’s the group of inhalers that can be used for anti-inflammatory reliever or for maintenance and reliever therapy?”, then it’s there,’ she said.
 
‘But there are some really good resources on the online platform, which I would encourage GPs to download as well.’
 
Given the critical importance of inhaler technique, and GPs often being time-poor, Dr Hancock suggests GPs could train nursing staff to check technique with patients, or include it as a request to the pharmacist in a prescription.
 
‘It is so very important, so if GPs feel they truly do not have time to do that, then strongly consider getting their nursing staff trained in how to check inhaler technique ... or ask the dispensing pharmacist to do it,’ she said.
 
‘Request it when writing the prescription by adding “please check inhaler technique” to the script.’
 
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