OBJECTIVES:

Asthma is a prevalent, long-term condition affecting 5‒10% of the global population. Despite better treatment procedures, insufficient adherence to inhaled asthma medications persists, contributing to the disease state and unfavorable effects that can lead to life-threatening situations. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the characteristics linked to parental intentions to adhere to asthma medication.

METHODS:

A pretested online survey was used to conduct cross-sectional research that included variables from the theory of planned behavior, demographics, and other characteristics linked to adherence. Data were collected between February 2020 and May 2020 from two leading hospitals in Qassim province, Saudi Arabia. To identify the factors that influence asthma treatment adherence, descriptive analyses and analytical techniques were used. Data were analyzed using STATA v16

RESULTS:

In all, 152 parents accessed the survey page, and 150 were qualified to participate in this study. The average age was 35.6 ± 9.9. Most participants (82%) were married, and 62.6% of the total participants were women. Around 85% of the participating parents reported a chronic disease. Furthermore, 78% of the parents had male children diagnosed with asthma. About three- quarters (70%) of the parents reported that their children were using one to two medications. Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that parental attitude (β = 0.59, P = 0.001) and subjective norms (β = 0.6, P = 0.007) were substantially linked with parents’ intentions to adhere to asthma treatments.

CONCLUSIONS:

This study investigated the factor influences of parental intentions to adhere to asthma medication, including covariates from the theory of planned behavior. Parental attitudes and parental subjective standards were found to have a significant effect on parental intentions Enhanced adherence would considerably improve disease management, lower costs, and improve patients’ quality of life.