From a Health Services perspective, improving the quality of asthma care remains a critical objective. This randomized controlled trial builds on several separate, ongoing, federally-funded research programs to develop and test an evidence-based, interactive internet program's ability to improve the quality of care for young children with asthma by enhancing parents asthma care skills and activating parents to discuss key processes of asthma care with their child's health care provider. A critical feature will be to improve the quality of asthma care delivery by health care providers. AsthmaNet will provide tailored clinical information to parents as well as give them decision aids to share with their providers. This study will gauge the effectiveness of an interactive web-based asthma patient activation system, AsthmaNet, in changing (1) parents' adherence to practices that can improve their children's asthma related quality of life and (2) primary care providers' prescribing behavior and chronic disease management. AsthmaNet differs from other asthma interventions (including computerized interventions) in that it delivers evidence-based guidelines and asthma management tools to parents of children with asthma between the ages of 2 and 10 years mindful of their interest and self-management skills and provides periodic, automated, tailored, feedback to parents and providers to help motivate and maintain asthma management skills and behaviors of both parents and providers during clinical encounters. AsthmaNet will result in improved processes and outcomes of care among subjects randomized to AsthmaNet. Our four specific aims and hypotheses are:
Aim 1 : To increase the appropriate use of controller medication in children with asthma H1. Children in AsthmaNet families will be more likely to have controller medication prescribed by their provider when appropriate.
Aim 2 : To improve adherence with prescribed asthma medications. H2. Parents of children in AsthmaNet families will report greater adherence to prescribed asthma medications Aim 3: To increase the use of written asthma care plans H3. Children in AsthmaNet families will be more likely to report using written care plans.
Aim 4 : to decrease the number of symptom days for children with asthma H4. Children in AsthmaNet families will experience fewer symptom days. ? ? ?

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
7R01HL079402-04
Application #
7678748
Study Section
Health Services Organization and Delivery Study Section (HSOD)
Program Officer
Smith, Robert A
Project Start
2006-07-25
Project End
2010-06-30
Budget Start
2008-07-03
Budget End
2009-06-30
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2008
Total Cost
$656,692
Indirect Cost
Name
Seattle Children's Hospital
Department
Type
DUNS #
048682157
City
Seattle
State
WA
Country
United States
Zip Code
98105
Christakis, Dimitri A; Garrison, Michelle M; Lozano, Paula et al. (2012) Improving parental adherence with asthma treatment guidelines: a randomized controlled trial of an interactive website. Acad Pediatr 12:302-11
Meischke, Hendrika; Lozano, Paula; Zhou, Chuan et al. (2011) Engagement in ""My Child's Asthma"", an interactive web-based pediatric asthma management intervention. Int J Med Inform 80:765-74
Garrison, Michelle M; Lozano, Paula; Christakis, Dimitri A (2011) Controller medication use and sleep problems in pediatric asthma: a longitudinal case-crossover analysis. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 165:826-30