OBSERVATIONS ON THE MANAGEMENT OF CHILDHOOD ACUTE ASTHMA IN A LARGE HOSPITAL

Objective: To study the documentation of assessment, the treatment and the follow-up arrangements for children admitted to hospital with acute asthma. Design: A retrospective audit of case notes. Setting: Tertiary level teaching hospital. Main outcome measures: A comparison with the asthma management plan issued by the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand. Results: We found poor documentation of assessment of asthma severity, low referral rates for asthma education, and inappropriate use of chest radiography. Bronchodilator therapy did not follow published guidelines. Good follow-up arrangements were achieved. Conclusions: The proportion of children with documentation of the assessment of acute asthma was unacceptably low.