Document Type
Article
Date of Original Version
2020
Abstract
Background: The majority of adults with persistent asthma have chronically uncontrolled disease and interventions to improve outcomes are needed. We evaluated the efficacy, feasi- bility, and acceptability of a multi-component smartphone-telemedicine program (TEAMS) to deliver asthma care remotely, support provider adherence to asthma management guide- lines, and improve patient outcomes.
Methods: TEAMS utilized: (1) remote symptom monitoring, (2) nurse-led smartphone-tele- medicine with self-management training for patients, and (3) Electronic medical record- based clinical decision support software. Adults aged 18-44 (N=33) and primary care providers (N=4) were recruited from a safety-net practice in Upstate New York. Asthma con- trol, quality of life, and FEV1 were measured at 0, 3 and 6 months. Acceptability was assessed via survey and end-of-study interviews. Paired t-test and mixed effects modeling were used to evaluate the effect of the intervention on asthma outcomes.
Results: At baseline, 80% of participants had uncontrolled asthma. By 6-months, 80% classi- fied as well-controlled. Improvements in control and quality of life were large (d=1.955, d=1.579). FEV%pred increased 4.2% (d=1.687) with the greatest gain in males, smokers, and lower educational status. Provider adherence to national guidelines increased from 43.3% to 86.7% (CI = 22.11-64.55) and patient adherence to medication increased from 45.58% to 85.29% (CI = 14.79-64.62). Acceptability was 95.7%; In follow up interviews, 29/30 patients and all providers indicated TEAMS worked better than usual care, supported effective self- management, and reduced symptoms over time, which led to greater self-efficacy and motivation to manage asthma.
Discussion: Based on these findings, we conclude that smartphone telemedicine could substantially improve clinical asthma management, adherence to guidelines, and patient outcomes.
Citation/Publisher Attribution
Jennifer R. Mammen , Judith D. Schoonmaker , James Java , Jill Halterman , Marc N. Berliant , Amber Crowley , Marina Reznik , Jonathan M. Feldman , Robert J. Fortuna , Sean M. Frey , Kelsey Turgeon , Ashley Philibert & Kimberly Arcoleo (2020): Going mobile with primary care: smartphone-telemedicine for asthma management in young urban adults (TEAMS), Journal of Asthma, DOI: 10.1080/02770903.2020.1830413
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.