Quality Statement:

Individuals with asthma should have a structured assessment at least annually to determine their level of asthma control and reasons for poor control.

Please see Ontario Health’s Quality Statement on Asthma Control.

LHF Tools:

Description: The Asthma Action Plan Yellow Zone Formulation Guide advises clinicians on the adjustment of inhaled controller therapy of asthma in the Yellow Zone, for ages 16 years and older.  

Access Instructions: In progress

Description: The Asthma Diagnosis and Management Algorithm for Primary Care is a tool that provides clinicians with an easy-to-use flow chart to diagnose and manage asthma. It is suitable for all ages.

Access Instructions: Downloadable PDF available here

Description: The Mild Asthma Decision Aid is a tool designed to engage patients with asthma and their care providers in discussions about current asthma treatment options. The tool helps them to reach a shared decision on treatment that is based on scientific evidence and each individual patient’s goals and preferences.

Access Instructions: Accessible online through this link

External Tools:

For Adult and Pediatric Populations

Description: The Asthma Control Test is a web-based tool that enables clinicians to complete a simple test for assessing their patient’s asthma control. Tests are available for children aged 4-11 years and individuals 12 years and older.

Access Instructions: Accessible online through this link

For Adult Populations

Description: The CoP Sustainable Inhaler Initiative is a project that helps make providers more aware of the climate impact of inhalers and supports sustainable prescription of inhalers. This initiative offers a variety of resources that encourage suitable prescribing practices for inhalers, encourage environmentally preferable alternatives to MDIs, facilitate appropriate inhaler technique, and practice sustainable recovery and recycling of inhalers.

Access Instructions: Accessible online through this link

Description: The Decision Tree: Occupational Asthma tool is intended for use by clinicians in the evaluation and management of work-related asthma.

Access Instructions: Accessible online through this link

Description: An educational resource that provides patients with information on how to use and care for their inhaler. It provides information to assess asthma factors, the relationship of asthma to work, occupational asthma, and work-exacerbated asthma.

Access Instructions: Downloadable PDF available here

Description: The eAPI is an electronic version of Dr. Teresa To’s 2010 Primary Care Asthma Performance Indicators (PC-API©) that auto-populates patient asthma performance data from the Airways Management and Outcomes Monitoring System (AMOMS) and from the Provider Asthma Assessment Form used in OSCAR at Queen’s Family Health Team. The tool seamlessly links to AsthmaLife® and has electronic data collection and reporting capabilities.

Access Instructions: Downloadable package to be integrated with EMRs available through registration on AsthmaLife

Description: My Asthma Diary is a helpful self-management tool developed by Lung Sask. Patients can use the asthma diary to record their information, symptoms, medication use, peak flow meter readings, and asthma triggers.

Access Instructions: Downloadable PDF available here

Description: The eAMS engages patients with asthma to complete a pre-visit questionnaire through a web portal or app and processes this information to give providers guideline-based advice to optimize therapy, personalized to each individual patient, through easy-to-use prompts built into their electronic medical record system. The eAMS also creates a self-management asthma action plan, which patients can access through their app or web portal anytime, anywhere. This empowers patients to self-manage their asthma, improving their symptoms and helping them to avoid asthma flare-ups and urgent healthcare visits.

Access Instructions: Downloadable package to be integrated with EMRs available by requesting a demo

For Pediatric Populations

Description: The Childhood Asthma Control Test was developed for use by parents, caregivers, and patients age 4-11 years. It is a simple, five-question tool that is self-administered. The tool helps determine whether a patient’s treatment plan is working or if it needs to be adjusted.

Access Instructions: Downloadable PDF available here

Description: The Decision Tree: Acute Pediatric Asthma tool is a decision aid intended for emergency department management of acute asthma. It provides best practice recommendations for mild, moderate, and severe asthma.

Access Instructions: Accessible online through this link

Description: The Initial Management of Pediatric Asthma in Emergent/Urgent Care Settings: Part Two publication is a document that outlines recommendations for the initial management of pediatric patients presenting to emergent/urgent care settings with acute asthma exacerbations. This guideline provides recommended actions based on the use of the Pediatric Respiratory Assessment Measure.

Access Instructions: Downloadable PDF available here

Description: The Modified Asthma Predictive Index is an assessment tool that predicts future atopic asthma in pediatric patients with recurrent wheezing. It is only applicable in young children with four or more episodes of wheezing per year. The mAPI's predictive ability depends heavily on prevalence of asthma in the general population.

Access Instructions: Accessible online through this link

Description: The Pediatric Respiratory Assessment Measure is a medical calculator to determine asthma exacerbation severity. It assesses factors such as oxygen saturation, suprasternal retractions, scalene muscle contractions, air entry, and wheezing.

Access Instructions: Accessible online through this link