Effectiveness of educational interventions on asthma self-management in Punjabi and Chinese asthma patients: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Asthma tends to be less well controlled among ethnic minority groups, and its prevalence in new immigrants increases significantly the longer they are in Canada; mainly due to their lack of familiarity with English and difficulty understanding information regarding the disease, health literacy, cultural issues, housing conditions, and lack of access to appropriate care services.

Objective: To explore the effectiveness of different formats of culturally relevant information and its impact on asthma patients' self-management within the Punjabi, Mandarin, and Cantonese communities.

Methods: Using a participatory approach, we developed and tested knowledge and community educational videos (with similar information, but used a different approach, i.

Technology, governance and patient safety: systems issues in technology and patient safety.

Technology and equipment are often identified as contributors to adverse medical events, however technology is seldom the focal point of investigation as a source of medical error or adverse event. It is often seen as both a means of reducing error (e.g.