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Factors associated with emergency department visits by children with asthma: implications for health education
Y Wasilewski1, N M Clark, D Evans
1Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA.
Insights
Younger children with asthma and those previously hospitalized are at high risk for emergency department visits. Parental education on asthma management and symptom recognition is crucial for reducing frequent emergency care use.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Pulmonology
- Public Health
- Health Services Research
Background:
- Childhood asthma is a significant public health concern, frequently leading to emergency department (ED) visits.
- Understanding factors influencing ED utilization is key to improving asthma care and reducing healthcare costs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the relationship between psychosocial and behavioral factors and the frequency of emergency department visits for childhood asthma.
- To identify predictors of high ED use in pediatric asthma patients.
Main Methods:
- A survey was conducted with parents of 445 children treated for asthma in an urban hospital's ED.
- Data collected focused on child's age, symptom duration, medication use, prior hospitalizations, parental confidence in medications, and decision-making for seeking emergency care.
Main Results:
- Younger child age, increased asthma symptom days, higher prescribed medication counts, and prior asthma hospitalizations were associated with frequent ED visits.
- Lower parental confidence in medication efficacy and failure to use clear criteria for seeking emergency care also predicted higher ED utilization.
Conclusions:
- Young children with asthma and those with a history of hospitalization are at elevated risk for ED use.
- Targeted family education is needed regarding asthma's inflammatory nature, proper medication use, continuous care, and symptom management to differentiate home-care from emergency situations.
Objectives:
This study investigated the relationship between psychosocial and behavioral factors and the frequency of emergency department visits for childhood asthma.
Methods:
Data obtained from a survey of parents of 445 children who were being treated for asthma in the emergency room of a large urban hospital were examined.
Results:
Factors associated with high emergency department use included the child's being of younger age, a greater number of days with symptoms of asthma, a higher number of asthma medicines prescribed, a prior hospitalization for asthma, a lower level of parental confidence in the efficacy of medicines, and a failure to use a criterion for deciding to seek emergency care.
Conclusions:
Younger children with asthma and children with previous hospitalization for asthma are at high risk for using emergency care. Families who use the emergency department frequently need to be further educated in the inflammatory nature of the disease, in the efficacy of proper use of medicine, in the need for ongoing care, and in criteria to distinguish those symptoms that can be handled at home from those requiring emergency care.