An Electronic Shared Decision-Making App to Improve Asthma Outcomes: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Shared decision-making (SDM) incorporates patient values and preferences to optimize asthma management decisions. Available asthma SDM aids primarily focus on medication selection.

Objective: To assess the usability, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness of an electronic SDM application, the ACTION (Active Conversation in asthma Treatment shared decisION-making) app, that addressed medication, nonmedication, and COVID-19 concerns for asthma.

Methods: In this pilot study, 81 participants with asthma were randomized into the control arm or ACTION app intervention. The ACTION app was completed 1 week before a clinic visit, and responses were shared with the medical provider. The primary outcomes were patient satisfaction and SDM quality. Next, ACTION app users (n = 9) and providers (n = 5) provided feedback through separate virtual focus groups. Sessions were coded by comparative analysis.

Results: The ACTION app group scored higher agreement that providers adequately addressed COVID-19 concerns compared with the control group (4.4 vs 3.7, P = .03). Although the ACTION app group had a higher total 9-item Shared Decision-Making Questionnaire score, this did not reach statistical significance (87.1 vs 83.3, P = .2). However, the ACTION app group demonstrated stronger agreement that their physician knew exactly how they wanted to be involved in decision-making (4.3 vs 3.8, P = .05), providers asked about preferences (4.3 vs 3.8, P = .05), and that different options were thoroughly weighed (4.3 vs 3.8, P = .03). Major focus group themes included that the ACTION app was practical and established a patient-centered agenda.

Conclusion: An electronic asthma SDM app that incorporates patient preferences regarding nonmedication-related, medication-related, and COVID-19-related concerns is well accepted and can improve patient satisfaction and SDM.