Objective To evaluate the feasibility of a novel intervention of health literacy-informed, telemedicine-enhanced asthma education and home management support for hospitalized children and caregivers, and assess caregiver perspectives of the intervention. Methods We conducted a pilot randomized trial of the Telehealth Education for Asthma Connecting Hospital and Home (TEACHH) intervention vs. standardized care (SC) for children (5–13 yrs) hospitalized with asthma. Participants in TEACHH received health literacy-informed teaching prior to discharge, including pictorial materials (e.g. flipchart, action plan), color- and shape-coded medication labels, and medication demonstration. Two Zoom-based follow-up teaching visits were completed within 1-month of discharge. Feasibility was assessed by tracking visit completion, and we measured preliminary outcomes using health records (i.e. total asthma-related acute healthcare visits) and blinded surveys of caregivers 2-, 4-, and 6-months post-discharge (i.e. symptom-free days, quality of life). We interviewed caregivers about their perceptions of TEACHH. Transcripts were coded inductively. Results We enrolled 26 children and interviewed 14 caregivers (9 TEACHH, 5 SC). All inpatient sessions were completed, as were 77% of virtual visits. Both groups experienced improved symptoms and quality of life over time. Caregivers valued the teaching, involvement of children, visual tools, and color-coded information of TEACHH. They described child-specific benefits, greater support after discharge, and improved asthma-related communication, and indicated that other families would benefit from similar teaching. Conclusions A novel program of patient-centered asthma education was feasible in both hospital and home settings and well received by caregivers. A larger study is needed to assess the impact of TEACHH on childhood asthma morbidity. Clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT04995692 (Registration date 8/9/2021)
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