Sunit Jariwala, M.D.

The ASTHMA-Educator is an innovative project that strives to improve asthma control in Bronx, New York. We developed and pilot tested an adult version of the ASTHMA-Educator, which is a software program (available for tablets and smartphones) that uses interactive touchscreen technology to deliver comprehensive asthma education to patients. Through videos and personalized algorithms, the tool covers asthma education topics such as the role of rescue versus controller medications, demonstration of inhaler technique, asthma action plan, environmental control and self-management strategies. This study will expand the existing ASTHMA-Educator software program to include pediatric patients. Our hope is that the program will lead to improved asthma outcomes, patient satisfaction and patient knowledge.

Update: This study has expanded the adult version of the ASTHMA-Educator software program to include pediatric patients between the ages of 7 and 17 years. Throughout the past year, we have been developing and incorporating the following features into the pediatric version of the program: 1) animated videos to deliver educational and behavioral/motivational content; 2) several games that evaluate asthma knowledge; and 3) push notifications. We conducted focus groups for patients and caregivers, and we have been refining the program based on participant responses. We have been recruiting and enrolling pediatric asthma patients in order to evaluate process outcomes and asthma knowledge.