Parental Knowledge, Attitude and the Practices Regarding Management of Childhood Bronchial Asthma

Abstract

Background: Asthma is one of childhood's most common chronic respiratory diseases and an important global health issue. Parents who are the primary caregiver play an important in the management of the disease. Poor parental knowledge and attitudes often contribute to inappropriate management practices, leading to a lack in the care process.
Aim and Objectives: To study parental knowledge, attitude, and the practices regarding management of childhood bronchial asthma by using a pre-structured questionnaire.
Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted for a period of 6 months in paediatrics department of ASCOMS and hospital using a pre-structured questionnaire. A total of 200 parents were interviewed and the data collected was analysed and expressed in terms of percentages and proportions.
Results: This study showed that the majority of parents who brought their children to the doctor were from urban areas, with doctors being their primary source of information about the illness. The present study shows that only 32% of parents had correct knowledge regarding the aetiology of bronchial asthma. About 45% of parents thought cold to be the precipitating factor of asthma while 43% thought that consuming specific food items was the triggering factor whereas only 11% had knowledge about a change of seasons being the main precipitating factor. Only 21% of parents were found to have a positive attitude towards inhalational therapy whereas the majority of parents didn't want their kid to be labelled with a diagnosis of bronchial asthma. Only 9% of parents agreed that they reported to the doctor within 6 hours of the onset of the clinical features and the majority (67%) of parents consulted the doctor because of the persistent cough in the child.
Conclusion: The parent's knowledge about bronchial asthma was poor. Parents have inadequate knowledge, and an average attitude, and apply incorrect practices regarding various aspects of childhood bronchial asthma. This gap between the recommended and actual practice may be related to the inadequate knowledge of parents. Therefore, improving knowledge and attitudes may encourage better practices among parents of children with asthma which can be achieved through health education.