Training children with asthma to use inhalation therapy equipment.

In Experiment I, four children with asthma were taught to use the intermittent positive-pressure breathing (IPPB) apparatus, a device that delivers bronchodilator medication to the lungs under positive pressure. Because these youngsters had not learned to use the device with repeated instructions, script with back-up reinforcement was introduced to train sequentially three responses - eye fixation, facial posturing, and diaphragmatic breathing - according to a multiple-baseline design. The procedures were effective in teaching appropriate use of the IPPB apparatus. Further, the children's use of the apparatus after training resulted in significantly more effective relief of asthma symptoms. In a second experiment, nurses were instructed in the application of the operant techniques used in the first study, and then served as experimenters in a partial replication of Experiment I. The data once again reflected a strong impact of the intervention program on IPPB responses.