Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in Oman

Objectives: The quality of asthma management in tertiary hospitals’ emergency departments (EDs) is key to sustained asthma control. We assessed the quality of asthma care and adherence to guidelines at the Royal Hospital in Oman. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, observational study examining t...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Suhaila Al Farsi, Nasser Al Busaidi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Oman Medical Specialty Board 2024-07-01
Series:Oman Medical Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:https://omjournal.org/articleDetails.aspx?coType=1&aId=3831
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849721393218846720
author Suhaila Al Farsi
Nasser Al Busaidi
author_facet Suhaila Al Farsi
Nasser Al Busaidi
author_sort Suhaila Al Farsi
collection DOAJ
description Objectives: The quality of asthma management in tertiary hospitals’ emergency departments (EDs) is key to sustained asthma control. We assessed the quality of asthma care and adherence to guidelines at the Royal Hospital in Oman. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, observational study examining the medical records of asthma patients who presented to the ED between 1 June 2014 and 1 June 2016. Results: A total of 217 patients were included in the study. Lack of proper documentation was observed throughout the study. Only 80 patients (59.7% of 134 available records) were on controller therapy and 51 were reported to be compliant. No asthma severity assessment was conducted, and 57 (32.9%) patients experienced respiratory distress. Peak expiratory flow rate measurements were not performed for all patients; chest X-ray was performed for 145 (66.8%) patients, and blood gas analysis for 83 (38.2%). The mean±SD time from the initial assessment to the treatment initiation was 12.0±11.0 minutes. Systemic steroids and nebulizers were used for initial management in 70.5% (n = 153) and 96.3% (n = 209) of patients, respectively. Reassessments at one and two hours following initial assessment were not done for all patients; reassessment records were missing for 50 (54.9%) patients after the first hour, and 50 patients after the second hour. Out of the total sample, 45 (20.7%) patients required hospital admission, with the majority (93.3%) admitted to the medical ward. Post-discharge procedures recommended by guidelines were rarely employed. Conclusions: There is a serious lack of adherence to asthma management guidelines in the ED. The 2009 Omani Ministry of Health guidelines should be updated, considering the recent updates of Global Initiative for Asthma strategies, adopted as the standard of care, and disseminated with regular monitoring to ensure compliance.
format Article
id doaj-art-be74d02f60bf4f2bbb392167b5c13bd8
institution DOAJ
issn 1999-768X
2070-5204
language English
publishDate 2024-07-01
publisher Oman Medical Specialty Board
record_format Article
series Oman Medical Journal
spelling doaj-art-be74d02f60bf4f2bbb392167b5c13bd82025-08-20T03:11:40ZengOman Medical Specialty BoardOman Medical Journal1999-768X2070-52042024-07-01394e654e65410.5001/omj.2024.93Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in OmanSuhaila Al Farsi0Nasser Al Busaidi1Department of Medicine, Royal Hospital, Muscat, OmanDepartment of Medicine, Royal Hospital, Muscat, OmanObjectives: The quality of asthma management in tertiary hospitals’ emergency departments (EDs) is key to sustained asthma control. We assessed the quality of asthma care and adherence to guidelines at the Royal Hospital in Oman. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, observational study examining the medical records of asthma patients who presented to the ED between 1 June 2014 and 1 June 2016. Results: A total of 217 patients were included in the study. Lack of proper documentation was observed throughout the study. Only 80 patients (59.7% of 134 available records) were on controller therapy and 51 were reported to be compliant. No asthma severity assessment was conducted, and 57 (32.9%) patients experienced respiratory distress. Peak expiratory flow rate measurements were not performed for all patients; chest X-ray was performed for 145 (66.8%) patients, and blood gas analysis for 83 (38.2%). The mean±SD time from the initial assessment to the treatment initiation was 12.0±11.0 minutes. Systemic steroids and nebulizers were used for initial management in 70.5% (n = 153) and 96.3% (n = 209) of patients, respectively. Reassessments at one and two hours following initial assessment were not done for all patients; reassessment records were missing for 50 (54.9%) patients after the first hour, and 50 patients after the second hour. Out of the total sample, 45 (20.7%) patients required hospital admission, with the majority (93.3%) admitted to the medical ward. Post-discharge procedures recommended by guidelines were rarely employed. Conclusions: There is a serious lack of adherence to asthma management guidelines in the ED. The 2009 Omani Ministry of Health guidelines should be updated, considering the recent updates of Global Initiative for Asthma strategies, adopted as the standard of care, and disseminated with regular monitoring to ensure compliance.https://omjournal.org/articleDetails.aspx?coType=1&aId=3831asthmaemergency servicehospitaloman
spellingShingle Suhaila Al Farsi
Nasser Al Busaidi
Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in Oman
Oman Medical Journal
asthma
emergency service
hospital
oman
title Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in Oman
title_full Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in Oman
title_fullStr Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in Oman
title_full_unstemmed Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in Oman
title_short Acute Asthma Management in a Tertiary Hospital in Oman
title_sort acute asthma management in a tertiary hospital in oman
topic asthma
emergency service
hospital
oman
url https://omjournal.org/articleDetails.aspx?coType=1&aId=3831
work_keys_str_mv AT suhailaalfarsi acuteasthmamanagementinatertiaryhospitalinoman
AT nasseralbusaidi acuteasthmamanagementinatertiaryhospitalinoman