Improvement in Inhalation Technique: A Pilot Quality Improvement Project

Excerpt

To the Editor: Incorrect inhalation technique may be responsible for poor asthma control and increase financial burden as well as poor quality of life to asthma patient [1]. This pilot quality improvement (QI) project was done at a pediatric asthma clinic in AIIMS, Rishikesh for a period of three months. We decided to improve the inhalation technique of patients by using a quality improvement method consisting of ‘plan do study act’ (PDSA) cycles. The current process of inhalation technique was studied and fishbone analysis was done which revealed the reasons for improper inhalation techniques. Lack of patient education, lack of awareness and motivation of healthcare staff, myths and misconceptions regarding inhalation technique were few reasons for improper inhalation technique. An inhaler specific standardized checklist consisting of eight items designed by the Dutch Lung Foundation [2] was prepared. The children were scored according to the correct steps done in asthma clinic. If a child demonstrated all steps correctly, he or she was given 8 score. Several PDSA cycles were performed after collecting baseline data on consecutive asthma clinics. …