The Action Plan for Asthma Attacks, previously published by the Conseil du médicament and now released by the Institut national d’excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS), has been the object of a study conducted by Dr. Francine Ducharme, from the Department of Paediatrics of the Université de Montréal and of Sainte-Justine University Hospital Center.
This study, of which the results were published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine in January 2011, reports that a written action plan for the treatment of asthma, in the form of a prescriptions chart, significantly increased adherence to oral and inhaled medications, as well as physicians’ recommendations.

INESSS would like to remind you that there are two action plans for the treatment of asthma available on its website. The Action Plan for Asthma was designed to provide instructions for patients suffering from asthma following a routine visit to the doctor, where as the Action Plan for Asthma Attacks, the tool that Dr. Ducharme studied, provides instructions to follow after having visited a hospital or emergency room for an asthma attack.

The written action plans are complete communication tools that promote self-management. They enable patients to evaluate the degree to which their asthma is controlled and provide information to help keep asthma under control.