Introducing Asthma Smart Kiosk for Lung Disease Management

This initiative aligns with the vision to elevate Phitsanulok Province as a model city in lung disease care. Operating under the Healthy Lung Smart City project, it underscores a commitment to advancing healthcare through innovation. By improving diagnostic capabilities and patient care, the project aims to reduce mortality rates related to respiratory ailments. Embracing patient-centred care, this long-standing 7-year project continuously enhances services for this demographic.

Respiratory diseases, exacerbated by air pollution, particularly PM 2.5 particulate matter, pose a significant public health challenge. Startling data reveals an average of 8-9 daily asthma-related deaths, totalling 3,142 annually, at a rate of 3.42 per 100,000 individuals. Notably, adults experience respiratory conditions at a rate about five times higher than children. AstraZeneca (Thailand) Co., Ltd. and the Department of Internal Medicine at Buddhachinaraj Phitsanulok Hospital have joined forces in a strategic alliance to introduce the Asthma Smart Kiosk. This innovative solution empowers healthcare professionals to efficiently evaluate, screen, and treat asthma patients, adhering to rigorous international standards. This initiative is a crucial step towards Phitsanulok Province's vision of becoming a leading model city for comprehensive lung disease care, paving the way for Thailand's public health system to attain global acclaim.

Dr Korn Talthip, Medical and Regulatory Affairs Director at AstraZeneca (Thailand) Ltd., emphasizes, “The Healthy Lung Smart City project aims to enhance patient access to cutting-edge innovations. Our objective is to raise asthma care to global standards and improve the efficiency of medical staff, especially given time constraints, to ensure accurate diagnoses and optimal support for as many patients as possible. This initiative aims to promote proactive care for individuals with chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung cancer. By expanding our telehealth system nationwide by 2025, we aspire to eliminate exacerbations of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ultimately reducing these rates to zero.”

Dr Kajorn Suntrapiwat, a Pulmonologist at Buddhachinaraj Phitsanulok Hospital, also a medical professor and developer who has laid the groundwork and enhanced preparedness for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease care by advancing contemporary treatment knowledge, explains, “Through the strategic provision of lung function testing machines in every community hospital and the establishment of a robust patient referral network, Phitsanulok Province is poised to become a model city for comprehensive lung disease care on multiple fronts.”

The Asthma Smart Kiosk serves as a valuable aid to medical personnel in assessing patients’ asthma control levels, including the evaluation of symptoms indicative of asthma; it offers video tutorials demonstrating proper inhaler usage for various types of asthma. Moreover, it educates the public on asthma knowledge and healthcare guidelines, with three primary objectives: ensuring adherence to medically correct drugs and devices, preventing acute asthma attacks, and ultimately striving to eliminate fatalities from lung diseases.

The Healthy Lung Smart City project is committed to implementing the Asthma Smart Kiosk innovation across numerous healthcare facilities nationwide, fostering continual improvements in the health outcomes of the Thai population. Anticipating tangible outcomes in the foreseeable future, the project will spearhead further innovations, including expanding its utilisation in a web-based format. This enhancement will enable patients to access information conveniently via QR Code scanning and conduct preliminary symptom assessments, thus alleviating congestion and substantially reducing hospital waiting times.