A Patient Advocate and Literacy-Based Treatment of Asthma

Half of US adults have no more than basic reading and numerical skills. A consequence is inadequate health literacy, which is associated with unsatisfactory patient-provider communication and poor health outcomes in chronic diseases, including asthma. We have adapted a patient navigator intervention to address asthma in high risk communities as a practical, immediate, and sustainable method of achieving effective health literacy in patients low health literacy. This intervention will lead to improved adherence and asthma control, attenuating health disparities so marked in asthma. It is compared for efficacy and cost-effectiveness with asthma education.