A family care approach for managing childhood asthma

Asthma is the most common chronic illness in childhood, affecting more than 2 million children annually. Although families have always been responsible for daily maintenance care, management of acute exacerbations of asthma are now coming within the province of home care management. The comprehensive family care approach discussed in this article incorporates environmental therapy, psychoeducational therapy, and medication therapy in a three-pronged approach to promote successful management of asthma episodes while working to reduce their incidence.