In the present environment of the 21st century, technological progress is on an increase. Thus, it permeates most spheres of human activity, introducing advanced solutions to various issues. With the use of technology and digitalization, communication also becomes easier. Computers and the Internet connection have become available to a considerable portion of the population, which equally serves as a facilitator of the new solution implementation. These ideas are actively utilized within the healthcare system, as well. Enhanced remote communication and digital support to treatment have instigated the development of telehealth with the use of mobile systems.
These concepts are indispensable for an extended reach of the medical services, as they allow practitioners to encompass their communities to a higher degree. Furthermore, they optimize the efficiency of the system, as nurses and doctors can provide more services with a decreased stress load. Modern technology can become a particularly strong contributor to the health of the younger generations, namely in the field of pediatrics. In fact, pediatric asthma patients exhibit a strong need for advanced treatment options on all levels. This paper focuses on the potential of a spacer inhaler supported by the advanced technological solutions for pediatric asthma patients.
The target demographics in question include adolescents aged between 11 and 17. This category does not imply any division by gender or ethnicity, as its concepts are applied universally within the age group. From the socioeconomic perspective, the range is equally broad, comprising all households with a sufficient income to provide adolescents with modern gadgets, namely smartphones. According to Hale and Viner (2018), adolescence is a crucial period in the life of a person, which possesses multiple determinants of health. At this stage, pediatric patients form their understanding of health, acquiring the key practices of promoting and preserving it.
However, the knowledge and interventions are to be delivered in a convenient, age-appropriate form. Following their inner desire to be in line with their peers, teenagers often rebel against certain practice that diverge from this paradigm (Edelman & Kudzma, 2018). Asthma is one of the issues threatening the health of an adolescent, being diagnosed in 8.6% of this population in the United States (Averell et al., 2021). Thus, this condition requires effective, age-specific interventions on a provider level.
In order to illustrate the challenges and opportunities emerging in this situation, a case study is proposed. A thirteen-year-old Caucasian teenager named Dennis has been diagnosed with asthma, following several instances of suffocation. The family is neither rich nor in need, as the household’s income corresponds to the average figures in the United States. Dennis attends a public school and has no problems with socialization. Following the onset of asthma, he had several appointments with the doctor at a local clinic who prescribed him the use of a traditional inhaler. However, the condition persisted, as the parents noticed that Dennis does not use his inhaler as prescribed.
The adolescent explained that he struggled to understand the functioning of his inhaler. During a follow-up visit to the medical institution, Dennis was offer to use a spacer inhaler. However, the patient still struggled to use it properly, and his condition did not improve. The staff suggested that the reasons lied in the psychological dimension rather than physical. Indeed, Dennis soon explained that having an inhaler in public made him look “not cool” in the eyes of his peers.
The case of Dennis remains common across the United States, as the perceived peer pressure often causes unhealthy behavior among adolescents. This phenomenon instils certain biases that prompt patients with asthma to stigmatize themselves and prefer social approval over personal health. In order to address this situation, a comprehensive provider-level plan is required. In fact, the use of modern technology may become an integral part of the solution to the problem. More specifically, pediatric asthma patient will benefit from a designated mobile application, serving to support them. The application should be available on all platforms and operation systems to enhance its reach.
This program is to be recommended and delivered to all adolescent patients who are diagnosed with asthma. The users can be assigned an individual patient number to track their progress and ensure electronic feedback. First of all, the application should include convenient video and text instructions on the use of their spacer inhalers. Second, a personal tracker of the progress will remind patients to take their asthma medication on time. If it is skipped, parents and nurses will receive an alert, allowing for early prevention. Next, the application will enable remote communication with the medical team, incorporating the convenient format of telemedicine into the treatment.
Finally, an extensive database can be included to spread the information that would normalize asthma in the minds of the patients with this condition. In fact, the application may become a platform for a social network-like entity, uniting adolescents with asthma throughout the United States. By sharing their personal stories and providing support to one another, these people will be prompted to concentrate on their personal health and see that their condition is by no means a reason for stigma.
References
Averell, C. M. Laliberte, F., Germain, G., Slade, D. J., Suh, M. S., & Spahn, J. (2021). Disease burden and treatment adherence among children and adolescent patients with asthma. Journal of Asthma. Web.
Edelman, C. L., & Kudzma, E. C. (2018). Health Promotion throughout the Life Span (9th ed.). Elsevier.
Hale, D. R., & Viner, R. M. (2017). How adolescent health influences education and employment: Investigating longitudinal associations and mechanisms. Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, 72(6). Web.