RESEARCH ARTICLE


Assessing Primary Care Physician’s Beliefs and Attitudes of Asthma Exacerbation Treatment and Follow-Up



William Lincourt*, 1, Richard H Stanford1, Alicia Gilsenan2, Dana DiBenedetti2, Hector Ortega1
1 GlaxoSmithKline, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
2 RTI Health Solutions, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA


Article Metrics

CrossRef Citations:
2
Total Statistics:

Full-Text HTML Views: 2341
Abstract HTML Views: 2119
PDF Downloads: 692
Total Views/Downloads: 5152
Unique Statistics:

Full-Text HTML Views: 1221
Abstract HTML Views: 1281
PDF Downloads: 462
Total Views/Downloads: 2964



Creative Commons License
© Lincourt et al.; Licensee Bentham Open.

open-access license: This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted, non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.

* Address correspondence to this author at the GlaxoSmithKline, Five Moore Drive, MS 17.1315F.1C, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-3398, USA; Tel: (919) 483-6284; Fax: (919) 483-4300; E-mail: william.r.lincourt@gsk.com


Abstract

Objective:

The objective of this survey was to assess adult primary care physicians’ and pediatricians’ perceptions of asthma exacerbation management, including beliefs concerning the discharge of patients from the emergency department (ED) following asthma exacerbations.

Methods:

This was a cross-sectional survey of primary care physicians (PCPs) treating adult or pediatric patients. Surveys were mailed to physicians and included questions on how PCPs define an exacerbation, how they are notified and how they followed-up with their patients who experienced exacerbations.

Results:

A total of 189 physicians were targeted in this survey, with 124 (65%) returning a completed survey. The majority of physicians agreed that an exacerbation included worsening asthma requiring a course of oral corticosteroids (83%). However, ≥70% of physicians agreed that an exacerbation could also include events which did not require OCS. Overall, 71% of PCPs believed that the majority of their patients’ asthma exacerbations were treated in the doctor’s office with only 6% believing the majority were treated in the ED. Over 90% of PCPs surveyed said they scheduled a follow-up with their patients “all or most of the time” when notified of an ED visit for an asthma exacerbation. Of the adult PCPs surveyed, 20% said they were never notified when one of their patients received treatment in the hospital because of an asthma exacerbation, whereas only 10% of pediatricians said they were never notified. The majority of PCPs surveyed (79%) indicated that if a controller medication was warranted, the ED staff should initiate treatment at time of discharge.

Conclusions:

This study showed that healthcare providers may not share a common definition of an asthma exacerbation. In addition, most physicians believe that the majority of exacerbations are treated in their office or at home. Further, most agreed that if a controller medication was warranted, the ED or urgent care staff should initiate treatment.

Keywords: Asthma, exacerbations, emergency department, primary care..