Request booklets

Good communication is central to good healthcare and when patients and health professionals work together the results can be life changing.

The Partners in Care booklet covers five steps to better consultations to help healthcare professionals enhance their skills in the areas of patient centred care and sharing responsibility.

Using case histories and evidence-based techniques this booklet is a really practical resource and quick reference guide for busy practitioners.

Asthma is a common and costly illness. In this supplement to the Guidelines in Practice monthly journal, Dr Martin Duerden explains that patients who suffer poorly controlled symptoms account for a disproportionate amount of the economic burden. Better management could reduce the economic and clinical tolls exerted by asthma.

Inhaled corticosteroid is the mainstay of asthma treatment and its use should be optimised before considering additional therapy. The move to environmentally friendly inhalers requires a planned transition and offers an opportunity to review patient care and help reduce the economic and clinical burdens imposed by this common disease.

Several types of inhaler device are available, including pressurised metered-dose inhalers (pMDIs), pMDIs plus spacers, breath-actuated pMDIs, and dry powder inhalers.

Inhaler devices vary greatly; for example in relative ease of use, the formulations available, degree of lung deposition, and cost.

This guideline is intended to guide primary care healthcare professionals in how to select an appropriate inhaler device for their asthma patient.