About half of those with asthma in Ireland do not have their condition under control, but a new free checklist could help them to find out what to do, writes CLAIRE O'CONNELL
HOW MANY times have you gone to the doctor, then realised half-way home that you had forgotten to ask about something that has been troubling you?
It happens to everybody. Now, however, the Asthma Society of Ireland has created a new checklist to help people with asthma to ask the important questions of their doctor so they can better manage their condition.
Ireland has the fourth highest prevalence of asthma worldwide and the condition affects almost half a million people here, according to Dr Jean Holohan, the society’s chief executive. Yet up to 60 per cent of patients here don’t have their asthma under control, she says.
“This figure of 60 per cent of patients with poor control really hasn’t changed over the past couple of years, and it is a concern that so many patients don’t have their asthma controlled,” she says.
In practice, poor control of asthma can mean that symptoms such as coughing and wheezing may interfere with exercise or daily life, or it may have even more serious consequences.
“For some people, their control may be so poor and they are so symptomatic that they may be missing days off work or days out of school,” says Holohan. “Or they may present with an urgent asthma attack.”
Up to 20,000 people with an asthma attack present in emergency departments each year in Ireland, and between 3,000 and 4,000 are admitted to hospital, she says. “The biggest tragedy for us in the Asthma Society is that we still have one asthma death per week at least in Ireland,” she says.
When asthma is managed well, it need not interfere with one’s life or stop one from playing sports, says Holohan. Rugby player Ronan O’Gara, who helped to launch the 10-point checklist to mark World Asthma Day today, has the condition, for example.
“The aim of the checklist is to encourage people to make an appointment for an annual structured review,” she explains. “Those 10 minutes that you have with your GP are very valuable, and this is to empower patients to know what to tell your doctor and know what to ask.”
The 10-point checklist encourages patients to ask, inform and react. It is split into three sections: to help patients to prepare for the visit; to know what to ask when they are there; and to make sure they are well informed by the time they leave.
It covers such key issues as knowing the proper technique for using inhalers, recognising such triggers as pollen, pets or cigarette smoke, and knowing what to do in case of an attack.
The checklist, which uses validated questions from the Global Initiative for Asthma, also offers space for patients’ own queries and concerns, some of which the society is hearing through its helplines.
“One of the biggest concerns that we are getting from telephone calls and e-mails now is that patients are genuinely worried about the cost of medication,” says Holohan.
“It is really important, if cost is an issue, to ask the doctor whether there is something else they can take that will give some of the same benefits.”
She is aware that not all doctors welcome the sight of lists in their patients’ hands, but points out that this one encourages patients to have done preparatory work in advance of their review, and that it can help them to get the most out of the visit.
“It is taking into account that the average consultation is around 10 minutes. It’s to get the best value out of this,” says Holohan.
“We are encouraging patients to inform themselves. They shouldn’t leave the surgery without knowing what do to if their asthma is out of control or if they have an attack.”
Change your life in 10 minutesis available on the Asthma Society of Ireland's website asthmasociety.ie and from members of the Irish Country Women's Association nationwide.
For more advice about asthma control, call 1850-445464.
