Knowledge and Practice regarding Asthma among Caregivers of School Age Children with Asthma in a Tertiary Care Centre, Thiruvananthapuram

 

Surya M S1, Jessy P S2

1Lecturer, KIMS College of Nursing, Thiruvananthapuram.

2Assistant Professor, Government College of Nursing, Thiruvananthapuram.

*Corresponding Author E-mail: smssurya3@gmail.com

 

ABSTRACT:

The study was titled Knowledge and Practice regarding asthma among caregivers of school age children with asthma in a Tertiary care centre, Thiruvananthapuram. The primary objective was to assess knowledge and practice regarding asthma among caregivers of school age children with asthma. The secondary objective was to find out the association between knowledge among caregivers of school age children with asthma and selected sociodemographic variables. The research approach adopted was quantitative and the design was descriptive design. 118 caregivers of asthmatic school aged children were selected from asthma clinic and pediatric medical ward according to inclusion criteria. The data was collected from the caregivers by using structured questionnaire and checklist. The findings of the study revealed that 28.8% of caregivers had good knowledge, 65.3% had average knowledge, and 5.9% had poor knowledge regarding asthma. 48.3% of caregivers had good practice, 43.2% had average practice, and 8.5% had poor practice regarding prevention and management of asthma. The study findings revealed that knowledge of the caregivers significantly associated with education, occupation of the caregivers and type of family.

 

KEYWORDS: Knowledge, Practice, Asthma, Caregivers, School age Children.

 

 


INTRODUCTION:

Asthma is a chronic lung disease with airway obstruction, airway inflammation and airway hyper-reactivity to various stimuli, often reversible with bronchodilators and anti-inflammatory drugs. If it is not treated properly some of the persistent asthmatics end up in irreversible state due to airway remodelling.1 According to global burden of 369 diseases and injuries in 204 countries and territories, an estimated 262 million affected with asthma in 2019 and caused 455000 deaths globally.2

 

 

According to the Global Asthma Report 2018, among India’s 1.31 billion people, about 6% of children and 2% of adults had asthma.3 The onset of asthma usually occurs in the first 5 years of life. Boys are affected twice as often as girls until adolescence, there after the incidents are approximately equal.

 

The chronic inflammation causes an associated increase in airway hyperresponsiveness that leads to recurrent episodes of wheezing, breathlessness, chest tightness, and coughing, particularly at night or in the early morning. These episodes are usually associated with widespread but variable airflow obstruction that is often reversible either spontaneously or with treatment.4 Many factors have been linked to an increased risk of developing asthma, although it is often difficult to find a single, direct cause. Asthma is more likely to occur if other family members also have asthma – particularly a close relative, such as a parent or sibling.5

 

Asthma cannot be cured but it can be controlled. The most common treatment is to use an inhaler, which delivers medication directly to the lungs. Inhalers can help to control the disease and helps to enjoy a normal, active life. Parents of children with asthma have varied beliefs and knowledge about asthma and its treatment which may affect the control of asthma. A study conducted in a tertiary care centre of western India revealed that knowledge level of the subjects have a significant association with education, occupation and monthly income of family.6

 

A study conducted in Pune on determinants of asthma knowledge and practices among caregivers of children with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma revealed that Parent/caregiver’s education levels influenced on their asthma knowledge and practices.7

 

In the department of Paediatric Medicine of SAT Hospital, the number of out- patients in respiratory OPD exceeds four thousand per year. Among this 26% of children were diagnosed to have asthma. Most of the acute exacerbations were due to improper knowledge and practice regarding asthma and its prevention and management.8 During the clinical exposure in SAT hospital Thiruvananthapuram, the investigator observed that approximately 30 to 35 asthmatic children are visiting in the asthma clinic every week. So, the researcher is interested to know the level of knowledge and practice regarding asthma among caregivers of school age children with asthma.

 

OBJECTIVES:

Primary objectives:

·       Assess knowledge regarding asthma among caregivers of school age children with asthma.

·       Assess practice regarding prevention and management of asthma among caregivers of school age children with asthma

 

Secondary objectives:

Find out the association between knowledge regarding asthma among caregivers of school age children with asthma and selected sociodemographic variables.

 

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

The research approach selected for the study was quantitative and the study design was descriptive design. After obtaining permission from Institutional Research Committee and Institutional Ethics Committee of Government College of Nursing, Principal of Government Medical College, Paediatric Medicine Department of SAT Hospital. 118 caregivers of school age children between the age group 6 to 12 yrs, attending in paediatric medicine department of SAT Hospital, who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were selected consecutively. An Informed consent obtained from the caregivers those who were willing to participate in the study. Self-reporting technique was used for data collection. The investigator collected sociodemographic data of caregiver, clinical data of child, caregiver’s knowledge regarding asthma and reported practice for prevention and management of asthma. The collected data were coded and analysed by using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Knowledge and practice of the caregivers were analysed by using frequency and percentage. Chi square test was used to find out the association between sociodemographic variables and knowledge of the caregiver.

 

RESULTS:

 

Figure 1: Distribution of the caregivers based on knowledge regarding asthma (n = 118)

 

Figure 1 shows that 28.8 % of caregivers had good knowledge, 65.3 % of caregivers had average knowledge and 5.9 % had poor knowledge regarding asthma.

 

Table 1: Distribution of caregivers based on the practice regarding prevention and management of asthma (n = 118)

Practice of caregivers

f

%

Good

57

48.3

Average

51

43.2

Poor

10

8.5

 

Table 1 depicts that 48.3 % of caregivers had good practice, 43.2 % of caregivers had average practice, and 8.5 % had poor practice.

 

Association between knowledge of caregivers regarding asthma with selected socio-demographic and clinical variables:

Table 2: Association between knowledge of caregivers and education (n = 118)

Education

Knowledge of caregiver

Good

Average

Poor

c2

df

p Value

f

%

f

%

f

%

Primary

1

0.9

10

0.9

3

2.5

 

 

 

Secondary

6

5.1

12

10.2

2

1.7

 

 

 

Higher secondary

6

5.1

36

30.5

2

1.7

26.5

10

0.003**

Graduation

11

9.3

11

9.3

0

0

 

 

 

Post graduation

4

3.4

3

2.5

0

0

 

 

 

Professional/technical education

6

5.1

5

4.2

0

0

 

 

 

* Significant at 0.05 level

 

Table 3: Association between knowledge of caregivers and type of family (n = 118)

Type of family

Knowledge of caregiver

 

Good

Average

Poor

c2

df

P value

 

f

%

f

%

f

%

 

 

 

Nuclear

21

17.8

54

45.8

6

5.1

19.2

4

.001**

Joint

13

11

23

19.5

0

0

 

 

 

Extended

0

0

0

0

1

0.9

 

 

 

* Significant at 0.05 level

 

Table 4: Association between knowledge of caregivers and occupation (n = 118)

Occupation

Knowledge of caregiver

 

Good

Average

Poor

c2

df

p value

 

f

%

f

%

f

%

 

 

 

Government employee

3

2.5

6

5.1

0

0

 

 

 

Private employee

7

5.9

5

4.2

0

0

19.12

8

0.01*

Self-employee

1

0.9

8

6.8

0

0

 

 

 

Daily wages

4

3.4

4

3.4

3

2.5

 

 

 

Home maker

19

16.1

54

45.8

4

3.4

 

 

 

* Significant at 0.05 level

 


From table 2 it was evident that p value <0.05, so there was a statistically significant association between knowledge of caregivers and education.

 

From Table 3 it was evident that p value < 0.05, so there was a statistically significant association between knowledge of caregivers and type of family.

 

Table 4 shows that p value < 0.05, so there was a statistically significant association between knowledge of caregivers and occupation.

 

DISCUSSION:

The present study revealed that 28.8% of caregivers had good knowledge, 65.3% had average knowledge, and 5.9% had poor knowledge regarding asthma. This finding was congruent with various research studies.9,10 The present study revealed that 48.3% of caregivers had good practice, 43.2% had average practice, and 8.5% had poor practice regarding prevention and management of asthma. This finding was inconsistent with a study conducted in western India.6 In the present study, there was a statistically significant association between knowledge of caregivers and Education (p = 0.003). Findings are congruent with another study conducted in Saudi Arabia.11 In the present study revealed that there was a significant association between knowledge of caregivers and occupation. These findings were supported by another quasi-experimental study conducted in western India, which reported that knowledge of caregivers significantly associated with their occupation.6

 

CONCLUSION:

In the light of the above findings, the following conclusions were drawn: Among the study participants, 28.8% of caregivers had good knowledge, 65.3% had average knowledge and 5.9% had poor knowledge regarding asthma. 48.3% of caregivers had good practice, 43.2% had average practice, and 8.5% had poor practice regarding prevention and management of asthma. Also revealed that knowledge of the caregivers significantly associated with education, occupation of the caregivers and type of family.

 

REFERENCES:

1.      H Paramesh, L Subramanyan, SO Shivbalan. IAP Text Book of Paediatrics. Fourth Edition, 2009. Indian Academy of Pediatrics, Kailas Darshan, 1st floor, Kennedy Bridge, Nana Chowk, Mumbi 400 007, India.: Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers (P)Ltd; 593–599 p.

2.      Vos T, Lim SS, Abbafati C, Abbas KM, Abbasi M, Abbasifard M, et al. Global burden of 369 diseases and injuries in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. The Lancet. 2020; 396(10258): 1204–22.

3.      The Global Asthma Report 2018 [Internet]. [cited 2022 Aug 3]. Available from: http://globalasthmareport.org/management/ india.php

4.      2005-GINA.pdf [Internet]. [cited 2022 Sep 3]. Available from: https://ginasthma.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/2005-GINA.pdf

5.      Asthma [Internet]. [cited 2023 Jun 13]. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/asthma

6.      Dhirja, Sharma MC, Goyal JP, M R. Knowledge and practices among parents of asthmatic children: a quasi-experimental study conducted at tertiary care center of Western India. Int J Community Med Public Health. 2021; 8(7): 3430–9.

7.      Volerman A, Fierstein J, Boon K, Vojta D, Gupta R. Determinants of asthma knowledge and practices among caregivers of children with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2021; 127(3): 392–4.

8.      Source Medical Records Library, Sree Avitom Thirunal Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram.

9.      AlOtaibi E, AlAteeq M. Knowledge and practice of parents and guardians about childhood asthma at King Abdulaziz Medical City for National Guard, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Risk Manag Healthc Policy. 2018; 11: 67–75.

10.   Amorha KC, Ayogu EE, Ngwoke BA, Okonta EO. Knowledge, attitudes and quality of life of caregivers towards asthma in their children: a Nigerian perspective. J Health Sci. 2020; 10(1): 47–57.

11.   Albarraq. Assessment of caregivers’ knowledge and behavior in the management of pediatric asthma in Jazan, Saudi Arabia. 2019 May 1 [cited 2023 Jul 3]; Available from: https:// www.saudijhealthsci.org/article.asp?issn=2278-0521;year=2019; volume=8;issue=2;spage=98;epage=104;aulast=Albarraq

 

 

Received on 26.04.2024         Modified on 31.05.2024

Accepted on 04.07.2024       ©A&V Publications All right reserved

A and V Pub J. of Nursing and Medical Res. 2024; 3(3):89-92.

DOI: 10.52711/jnmr.2024.20