THE INTERVENTION
A COMMUNITY-BASED ASTHMA INTERVENTION TO IMPROVE ASTHMA FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN ADULTS
- Results from the Chicago Initiative to Raise Asthma Health Equity (CHIRAH) Intervention Study
African Americans in Chicago are more likely than people of other races to be sick with asthma, go to the hospital for asthma, and miss work because of asthma. They also have one of the highest rates of death from asthma in the country. These dramatic statistics motivated researchers at Stroger Hospital and Northwestern Hospital to design an intervention to improve asthma in this high risk population. They wanted to design an intervention that would be based in the community, would be delivered by community members, and would improve asthma self-efficacy. Asthma self-efficacy is the belief that a person can and will be good at doing all the things needed to manage their asthma. After designing the intervention, the researchers tested if it actually worked using a randomized controlled trial.
Participants in this study were recruited from two primary care clinics in Austin. After they were recruited, participants then received either: 1) An invitation to 4 group education sessions led by a social worker and 6 home visits by a community health worker, or 2) Written educational information in the mail. Participants were asked a series of questions about their health and asthma by telephone before the start of the interventions and then three and six months later.
A total of 42 participants were recruited for the study. These participants were mainly African American, low income, and they had poorly controlled persistent asthma. Asthma self-efficacy improved significantly at 3 months in the participants who received the group education and home visits, compared to the participants who received the mailed information. The participants who received the group education and home visits were also more likely to have asthma action plans at 3 months, better asthma quality of life at 6 months, and better coping skills at 6 months.
In conclusion, this community-based asthma intervention improved asthma self-efficacy, coping skills, and asthma quality of life for low income African American adults in Chicago. A larger study is now needed to test the ability of this intervention to improve asthma symptoms, hospitalizations, and lung function.
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Photos: Graduation ceremony - Participants with their community health workers | |