The impact of a school-based, nurse-delivered asthma health education programme on quality of life, knowledge and attitudes of Saudi children with asthma

Alreshidi, N; Livesley, J; Al-Kalaldeh, M; Long, T

Abstract

Background
More than two million people have asthma in Saudi Arabia: 13% aged 6-10 years. Asthma is one of the most common childhood illnesses. Little has been explored about children’s ability to learn more about their own asthma in Saudi Arabia.

Aims
The study was designed to assess the impact of a school-based, nurse-delivered asthma health education programme on asthmatic children's knowledge and attitude towards asthma, quality of life, anxiety level, and school absenteeism.

Methods
A quasi-experimental, non-equivalent groups, pre-test post-test design was used. The education programme was developed from existing evidence. The Paediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire, Spence Anxiety Tool, Asthma Knowledge Questionnaire, and Asthma Attitude Questionnaire were employed for data collection. Intervention (n=130) and control (n=98) groups were drawn from 10 schools in Ha’il region, Saudi Arabia. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to examine differences within and between groups.

Results
Knowledge of asthma increased significantly more in the intervention group than in the control group. Attitude toward asthma was not changed by the intervention. Anxiety scores reverted to pre-test level by post-test II. The intervention group had significantly better total quality of life scores than the control group, and school absenteeism reduced significantly after delivery of the programme.

Conclusion
The asthma education programme impacted positively on students' knowledge, quality of life, and school attendance. However, asthma education did not change attitudes towards the condition, and the impact on anxiety was not persistent. The results emphasise the benefits of provision of health education directly to children. Asthma education should be integrated into the Saudi national child health programme.
Key words: Asthma, Children, Education programme, Self-agency

Citation

Alreshidi, N., Livesley, J., Al-Kalaldeh, M., & Long, T. (2020). The impact of a school-based, nurse-delivered asthma health education programme on quality of life, knowledge and attitudes of Saudi children with asthma. Comprehensive Child and Adolescent Nursing, 45(1), 43-57. https://doi.org/10.1080/24694193.2020.1824033

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 11, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Oct 6, 2020
• Publication Date: Oct 6, 2020
• Deposit Date: Sep 14, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 6, 2021
• Journal: Comprehensive Child and Adolescent Nursing
• Print ISSN: 2469-4193
• Electronic ISSN: 2469-4207
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Volume: 45
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 43-57
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/24694193.2020.1824033
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/24694193.2020.1824033
• Related Public URLs: http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/icpn21/current#.VyIFvXoriao
• Additional Information: Access Information : This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Comprehensive Child and Adolescent Nursing on 6th October 2020, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/24694193.2020.1824033.