None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
This project aims to utilise a computerised solution within community pharmacy to identify patients whose asthma may not be optimally managed, and then implement and evaluate multidisciplinary educational interventions. A software application that extracts data from the market leading pharmacy dispensing software system in Australia (WiniFRED Dispense; PCA/NU Systems) developed by the Research Team will be refined. The intervention study will be conducted across three states: Tasmania, Victoria and South Australia, and community pharmacists using the WiniFRED Dispense System will be personally invited to participate by letter. Participating pharmacies will install the software application that will generate a list of patients who have received six or more canisters of short-acting beta-2 agonists in the preceding 12 months. This indicates that the patient may be using on average three or more inhalations per day of reliever medication, which isin excess of contemporary guidelines for optimal asthma control. Identified patients will be randomised to an intervention or control group. Intervention patients will either receive a mailed personalised letter and intervention pack or an ‘alert flag’ will be placed in their personal details within the dispensing system so that the pharmacist can give them an intervention pack with appropriate counselling on their next visit to the pharmacy. Each intervention will involve encouragement of patients to seek a review of their asthma management from their GP. The intervention pack will consist of the following information: - a computer-generated personalised letter - an educational leaflet about asthma - asthma control, quality of life, and medication adherence questionnaires - a computer-generated letter (and medication history) to give to their GP - a GP satisfaction/perception survey of the intervention to give to their GP. Control patients will receive usual care until follow-up, 12 months later. At this time they will receive an intervention pack and all intervention patients will receive repeat asthma-related questionnaires. Changes in asthma medication usage and questionnaire scores will be examined. We recently conducted a pilot study in Tasmania which demonstrated major improvements in the use of preventer medication at follow-up.
Interventions
This project aims to utilise a computerised solution within community pharmacy to
identify patients whose asthma may not be optimally managed, and then
implement and evaluate multidisciplinary educational interventions. A software
application that extracts data from the market leading pharmacy dispensing
software system in Australia (WiniFRED Dispense; PCA/NU Systems) developed by
the Research Team will be refined. The intervention study will be conducted across
three states: Tasmania, Victoria
This project aims to utilise a computerised solution within community pharmacy to identify patients whose asthma may not be optimally managed, and then implement and evaluate multidisciplinary educational interventions. A software application that extracts data from the market leading pharmacy dispensing software system in Australia (WiniFRED Dispense; PCA/NU Systems) developed by the Research Team will be refined. The intervention study will be conducted across three states: Tasmania, Victoria and South Australia, and community pharmacists using the WiniFRED Dispense System will be personally invited to participate by letter. Participating pharmacies will install the software application that will generate a list of patients who have received six or more canisters of short-acting beta-2 agonists in the preceding 12 months. This indicates that the patient may be using on average three or more inhalations per day of reliever medication, which is in excess of contemporary guidelines for optimal asthma control. Identified patients will be randomised to an intervention or control group. Intervention patients will either receive a mailed personalised letter and intervention pack or an ‘alert flag’ will be placed in their personal details within the dispensing system so that the pharmacist can give them an intervention pack with appropriate counselling on their next visit to the pharmacy. Each intervention will involve encouragement of patients to seek a review of their asthma management from their general practitioner (GP). The intervention pack will consist of the following information: - a computer-generated personalised letter - an educational leaflet about asthma - asthma control, quality of life, and medication adherence questionnaires - a computer-generated letter (and medication history) to give to their GP - a GP satisfaction/perception survey of the intervention to give to their GP. Control patients will receive usual care until follow-up, 12 months later. At this time they will receive an intervention pack and all intervention patients will receive repeat asthma-related questionnaires. Changes in asthma medication usage and questionnaire scores will be examined. We recently conducted a pilot study in Tasmania which demonstrated major improvements in the use of preventer medication at follow-up.
Sponsors
Unit for Medication Outcomes Research and Education, School of Pharmacy, University of Tasmania
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Educational / counselling / training
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
The program will identify patients who have received six or more relievers (inhaled short-acting beta-2-agonists) in the preceding 12 months (at least three in each six-month period) indicating that they may be using on average three or more inhalations per day of reliever medication.
Exclusion criteria
The data-mining software application will automatically exclude patients receiving inhaled anticholinergic therapy (tiotropium or ipratropium) or methylxanthines, indicating the likely presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or leukotriene-receptor antagonists, indicating the probable diagnosis of severe asthma likely to be under the care of a respiratory specialist. The community pharmacist will use they're knowledge of each patient to exlude those who: - are a resident of an aged care facility; - are under 18 years of age; - are unlikely to understand the letter (e.g. history of dementia with limited carer support); - are likley to be overly alarmed by receiving the intervention; or - possess other extenuating factors, which will be documented by the pharmacist.
Outcome results
None listed