Abstract
Objective:
To develop a valid and reliable questionnaire to assess patients' beliefs about inhaler treatment for asthma.
Design:
A structured interview in which patients' beliefs about inhalers were individually rated. Factor analysis of those beliefs that had the highest correlations with estimated inhaler use.
Setting and subjects:
A stratified random sample of 40 patients taking a combination of salbutamol and beclomethasone dipropionate in one general practice.
Results:
Six factors explained 67.7% of the variance relating to beclomethasone dipropionate use: positive beliefs about the inhaler, satisfaction with the repeat prescription system, dissatisfaction with the doctor, collecting inhalers, a preference for tablets and concern about side-effects. Seven factors explained 69.9% of the variance relating to salbutamol use: no faith in prevention, a dislike of inhalers, relying on regular salbutamol, lack of disability, a preference for tablets, making decisions about inhalers and inhalers not lasting long enough.
Conclusions:
Beliefs about inhaler treatment can be classified into relatively few factors that explain a significant proportion of the beliefs that relate to inhaler use. Development of the questionnaire is continuing to produce a valid questionnaire with reliable subscales.
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Hand, C. Developing a questionnaire to measure patients' beliefs about inhaler treatment: a pilot study. Prim Care Respir J 6, 40–43 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/pcrj.1998.19
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/pcrj.1998.19