Effect of Family Empowerment on Asthma Control in School-Age Children

• Published in: Tanaffus 2018-01, Vol.17 (1), p.47-52
• Main Authors: Kashaninia, Zahra, Payrovee, Zahra, Soltani, Reza, Mahdaviani, Seyed Alireza
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Original
• ISSN: 1735-0344; 2345-3729

Recent surveys have showed that asthma control still remains suboptimal. Family members have an extensive impact on the level of asthma control in school-age children. Family empowerment has a positive impact on the quality of life of school-age children with asthma. This study aimed to determine the efficacy of family empowerment on asthma control in school-age children. Forty-five children with asthma (6-12 years) and their parents were enrolled in a pediatric asthma clinic during their follow-up visits. The family empowerment program consisted of self-directed educational material, lectures (a nurse-focused format), group interaction (a learner-focused format), group discussions, and demonstration of educational films. The primary outcome was change in asthma control measured by the C-ACT questionnaire. In this study, 45 patients were enrolled and randomly divided into two groups: intervention (n=23) and control (n=22). Demographic variables including age and sex were not significantly different between the two groups. There were no significant differences in pre-test asthma control scores between the intervention and control groups at pre-test (p=0.82). However, there was a significant difference in asthma control scores between the intervention and control groups at post-test (p