Asthma Patient Bill of Rights

Asthma is the most frequent chronic medical disease in childhood and remains common throughout life. It is the leading cause of hospitalization in children, a frequent cause in adults, and an exceedingly frequent cause of emergency medical care at all ages.

Asthma has been known to the medical profession for over 2000 years. The number of medications effective for asthma has been progressively increasing. There is variability, however, in the effectiveness with which treatment measures have been applied. Patients and families are frustrated by well-intentioned but misguided practices, occasional indifference, and medical attention focused on the immediate symptoms rather than a comprehensive approach to asthma management.

State-of-the-art care usually results in high degree of successful control of asthma with acceptably safe and reasonably convenient measures. Patients should therefore not settle for less. They should insist on:

• THE RIGHT TO IMMEDIATE CARE WHEN NEEDED FOR RESPIRATORY DISTRESS
• THE RIGHT TO INTENSIVE TREATMENT UNTIL RESPIRATORY DISTRESS IS RELIEVED
• THE RIGHT TO MEASURES THAT PREVENT THE NEED FOR FUTURE EMERGENCY CARE
• THE RIGHT TO ACCURATE SCIENTIFIC MEDICAL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT ASTHMA
• THE RIGHT TO A COMPREHENSIVE EVALUATION TO ASSURE THE DIAGNOSIS, CHARACTERIZE THE PATTERN OF SYMPTOMS, ASSESS THE SEVERITY, AND IDENTIFY THE TRIGGERS OF ASTHMA
• THE RIGHT TO AN ORGANIZED RATIONAL THERAPEUTIC PLAN AND INSTRUCTION TO IMPLEMENT THAT PLAN
• THE RIGHT TO MEDICATION THAT CAN SAFELY, RAPIDLY AND EFFECTIVELY RELIEVE SYMPTOMS
• THE RIGHT TO MEASURES THAT CAN PREVENT FREQUENT RETURN OF TROUBLESOME SYMPTOMS WHILE MINIMIZING SIDE EFFECTS OF TREATMENT
• THE RIGHT TO BE ABLE TO TAKE PART IN THE SAME ACTIVITIES AS NONASTHMATICS, INCLUDING COMPETITIVE ATHLETICS
• THE RIGHT TO A KNOWLEDGEABLE PHYSICIAN WITH INTEREST AND EXPERTISE IN MANAGING ASTHMA.