Asthma Care by Nurse Practitioners in the United States

PURPOSE: To survey nurse practitioners (NPs) in the United States on their level of input to asthma care prior to enrolling in The National Asthma and Respiratory Training Centre (NARTC) specialist asthma education program in the UK. DATA SOURCES: Responses of 134 (66%) of the 202 NPs who self-selected for enrollment in the NARTC program on a preliminary questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: Nearly all (133 or 99%) currently work with asthmatics and 122 (91%) prescribe asthma drugs. Only 92 (69%) measure peak flow(PF), 84 (63%) check inhaler technique, 76 (57%) teach use of a home PF meter and diary, and 63 (47%) provide written self-management plans on any regular basis. Many have not established follow-up procedures (56 or 42%), or evaluated their asthma management practices (55 or 41%). IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Successful asthma management requires correct medication, systematic follow-up, patient education, and self-management. Specialist asthma training should encourage practitioners to combine effective drug usage with a long-term preventative approach.