Self-Care Confidence and eHealth Education in Adults with Asthma: Do They Reduce Healthcare Utilization?

Introduction: The purpose of this research was to analyze personal characteristics and behaviors associated with adults with asthma. Does self-care confidence or eHealth education reduce their healthcare utilization to decrease medical costs? Methods: Using 2015 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) data, the study examined the data of adults (n = 3380) with asthma. Chi-square tests calculated differences for eight personal characteristics and behaviors: gender, age, education, online health information searching, self-reported health status, physical activity limitations, emergency room visits, and hospitalization related to asthma. Individuals very confident to manage their asthma were compared to those feeling less empowered to manage their health. Individuals who recently used the Internet to find health information were compared to those who did not go online for resources. Results: CHIS data showed a lack of full self-care confidence in a quarter of surveyed asthmatics. Better self-reported health status correlated with increased self-care confidence. Women, those with less education, and those with physical activity limitations were less confident to manage their health. Fewer people who were fully self-confident visited emergency rooms for asthma. Self-confidence had no effect on the rate of hospitalization. The use of eHealth education was significantly more frequent in people under 70 years old, those with less than a high school education, and those without physical activity limitations. Better self-reported health status correlated with increased eHealth education use. More people who used eHealth education visited emergency rooms for asthma. eHealth education had no effect on the rate of hospitalization. Conclusions: It is possible to identify individuals with asthma with an increased risk of not feeling confident about their ability to manage their disease. Health care professionals can plan extra in-person efforts to educate asthmatics who feel insecure about managing their health. Women, individuals in poor or fair health, and those with physical activity limitations should be assessed for self-care confidence soon after diagnosis and monitored at regular intervals. Full self-care confidence correlated with fewer visits to ERs. eHealth education was not shown to play a role in reduced healthcare utilization. Keywords: Self-Care Confidence, Asthma, Health Promotion, eHealth Education, Physical Activity Limitations