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Senior Lecturer in Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia
Published Online, May 15, 2007. www.theannals.com, DOI 10.1345/aph.1K032
Audience: The intended audience is pharmacists; however, the audience could potentially be extended to other allied healthcare providers.
Purpose: The author's intention is to provide an overview of asthma and aspects of the disease relevant to pharmacists.
Content: The book is organized into chapters. The initial chapters give an overview of the disease's process and characteristics; the remaining chapters describe specific aspects of asthma. The content of each chapter is discrete and comprehensive. If the reader is using this as a reference text and needs to focus on specific areas at a time, this organization is suitable.
Usability: The references in this text are current and relevant.
Highlights: The text is easy to read and provides a broad background to asthma and its management. The author has tried to highlight potential problems associated with asthma management in practice. It is broad in its coverage of specific areas.
Limitations: In terms of assisting the practicing healthcare professional, the text neither seems to align to the format of an asthma management plan, nor refers to practice guidelines to any great extent. When it does refer to the details associated with practice, it is very much based on practice in the UK.
Due to the structure of the book, it is sometimes necessary to refer to several different pages or chapters to get full information on one subject (eg, assessing asthma severity). Where the information overlaps, there are sometimes slight discrepancies. Further, the broad scope of the material means that some less significant topics (to the current way of thinking) are given as much importance as the trends and opinions in asthma management today. Such a style suggests that the book is written for a novice rather than an expert. I believe that it would be better to focus on the current issues.
Comparison with Other Related Books or Products: This text provides a broad overview of asthma and is organized in discrete sections. It is more consistent with a reference text rather than a practice text.
Reviewer's Summary: This is an easy-to-read text on asthma, its management, and issues associated with the disease. It is a good starting text for healthcare professionals and a suitable reference text for pharmacists. However, it cannot replace asthma management guidelines and is not for the highly knowledgeable healthcare professional involved in the management of people with asthma.
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