Description

Bronchial asthma is one of the most prevalent chronic respiratory disorders and its treatment can be difficult. We explored the hypothesis that pharmacist assistance in the management of bronchial asthma can enhance patient outcomes in this study. A two stage research using the asthma control test and a structured questionnaire regarding the patients’ medical status was designed, including a training element and a service aspect (based on the results of a qualitative study). The study included 338 asthmatic patients and was done at 21 pharmacies in Lithuania (age 18-88 years). The average number of errors patients made in administering asthma drugs before the pharmacy service was offered was 2.03; this number fell to 1.12 after the service was provided. Illness control improved in tandem with the reduction in errors: 26.1% of patients who previously had no control over their disease symptoms began to have sufficient control over their asthma symptoms (asthma control test >20) after the service was offered. The lower number of errors is most likely due to the good impacts of the given services. Pharmacists may enhance the outcomes of asthmatic patients by minimizing the amount of patient errors. Bronchial asthma is one of the most common chronic respiratory disorders, with a growing global prevalence and cost impact. Asthma is one of the top ten reasons for seeing a general practitioner in Lithuania, which has one of the highest incidence rates in southern Europe. Asthma is normally treated with medications, however due to inadequate management; around 250,000 asthmatic individuals die worldwide each year.

In response to this unsatisfactory situation, several asthma management approaches developed by health experts have been evaluated on a global scale. These services often involve instructional interventions for patients, self-management through peak expiratory flow rate monitoring and surveys about symptom intensity and quality of life.

A pharmacist’s intervention has been shown in studies all around the world to enhance asthma control. Through their experience, daily interaction with patients and accessibility, community pharmacists are in a unique position to assist patients in managing chronic disease. Despite the fact that patients have a significant motivation to learn how to manage their symptoms, only one-third are interested in a tailored asthma treatment plan. The most common error patients make in medication management is incorrect device usage.

Asthmatic patients in Lithuania are educated and their symptoms are monitored by physicians or nurses on a regular basis. Community pharmacists are not permitted by law to provide disease management services to patients. However, given that the average wait time to see a general practitioner in Lithuania is roughly ten days, it is critical to integrate pharmaceutical specialists into public health programmes. One method to accomplish this is to broaden the scope of pharmacist consultations. According to one survey, the majority of pharmacists are active in health education and disease prevention initiatives connected to medication administration or sales. Other studies have found that health promotion initiatives in public pharmacies enhance anticoagulation, diabetic, asthma and epilepsy management compliance. A pharmacist is regarded a health specialist in Lithuania, but not a health care professional, as defined by a European union directive. This distinction prohibits pharmaceutical intervention programmes from being available to Lithuanian patients. As a result, no specialised community pharmacy models based on pharmacological treatment, disease state management or national consensus recommendations for asthma care have been examined in Lithuania.

Inhaled medicines are the most often used asthma therapies. An inhaling technique and correct inhalation device use have a direct influence on asthma management. Asthma education is usually provided by doctors or nurses in Lithuania. However, worldwide evidence suggests that pharmacists can make a major contribution to the management of newly developed asthma. Continuity of treatment and patient education are necessary to obtain improved asthma management. Positive feedback has been received on publicly provided pharmaceutical care services and patient education about correct drug usage. The public pharmacist is one of the most commonly visited and accessible health professionals in Lithuania, with 1368 pharmacies. Pharmacists may constantly contribute to their patients’ education, enhancing illness control and quality of life.

Patients who visit public pharmacies are frequently given important information about medicine dose. The frequency and timing of usage given that there are 57,700 bronchial asthma patients in Lithuania, it is critical to expand pharmaceutical services for asthma patients. The goals of this study were to create an efficient and effective pharmaceutical service model for asthma patients and to assess the service's influence on asthma management.