Cross-sectional population based study examining the impact of children with asthma on US rural families

Abstract

Introduction: Approximately 7.1 million US children have asthma. The burden of asthma is disproportionate with ruralUSpopulations experiencing a higher prevalence of the disease. Rural populations experience additional disparities regarding health care access, job availability, and daily living resources. Hence, the family impact of having a child with asthma may be influenced by geographic locale. This impact could be a result of health insurance tied to employment, out of pocket costs, and health care provider availability. Few studies have assessed the impact a child’s asthma has on a family. This study sought to answer the question: What is the impact of children with asthma on US rural families? Methods: Multivariate techniques were performed to examine a single year of data from two connected population-based datasets, the 2007-2008 National Survey of Children’s Health and the 2009-2010 Children with Special Health Care Needs Survey. Children with current asthma defined the study population for both datasets. A logistic regression model was performed for each database. The dependent variable for the first model was child in family currently has asthma , for the second it was rural children with current asthma . Results: The first logistic regression model confirmed that rural children were more likely to have asthma than non-rural children. The second logistic regression model yielded that rural families with a child diagnosed with asthma had greater odds of: not having health insurance, having a parent who stopped working, avoided a job change, or experienced financial problems because of the child’s health. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that rural families experience a disproportionate financial hardship as a result of their child’s asthma. Pharmacist intervention in asthma care in rural areas has the potential to decrease the financial burden for a family while also improving a child’s health.