Asthma education is delivered in several modalities: (i) patient education at initial diagnosis—this is the most important because it marks the beginning of a partnership between the patient and physician. At this stage, asthma education should be individualized to a patient’s needs and cover the most elementary issues. First, the patient should be informed of the diagnosis, and enquired about and evaluated for their expectations of medical treatment. At the least, the first 6 topics of asthma education described above should be communicated to the patient. Follow-up visits are scheduled and free educational materials delivered to the patient as well. (ii) Follow-up education and evaluation: all questions from the patients should be answered and the level of asthma control assessed during each follow-up visit. (iii) Group education, referring to asthma education events taking place on a regular basis at the community level, where face-to-face patient-physician interviews as well as question-and-answer sessions are available. (iv) Self-education through free distribution of brochures on the prevention and treatment of asthma. (v) Mutual learning, as accessible in community-based asthma clubs and experience-sharing sessions.
All in all, asthma education is a long-term ongoing project which requires regular updates and perseverance.