NIH grant will fund study of telehealth for adolescents and young adults with asthma

UF College of Pharmacy researchers secured a National Institutes of Health, or NIH, grant to study effectiveness and cost-benefit of medication therapy management, or MTM, video telehealth for adolescents and young adults with poorly controlled asthma.

Haesuk Park, PhD, an assistant professor of pharmaceutical outcomes and policy, and Teresa Roane, Pharm.D., M.B.A., BCACP, associate director of the Center for Quality Medication Management, or CQM, secured an NIH/NHLBI R01 grant worth more than $700,000. UF researchers collaborated with Dr. Kathryn Blake at Nemours Children’s Health System. The American Lung Association Airways Clinical Research Centers will conduct the trial to investigate the impact of a MTM video telehealthcare intervention evaluating the proper use of asthma inhalers as well as electronic monitoring of medication adherence, health outcomes, and cost-benefit.

The increased use of smart phones with cameras provide a great opportunity for pharmacist to provide MTM consultations to patients in a private space. The long-term goal of this study is to develop a tailored, effective, and sustainable MTM video telehealth intervention to improve asthma medication adherence and health outcomes. The UF CQM will conduct the MTM video telehealth and the department of pharmaceutical outcomes and policy will conduct the cost-benefit analysis of the video telehealth.