The validity and reliability of two asthma knowledge questionnaires

Background. This study aimed to develop and validate two asthma knowledge questionnaires, one for consumers (CQ) and one for health care professionals (HQ) to fill an existing gap in the literature. Methods. Following development and pilot testing, the revised CQ and HQ were administered to respiratory physicians, pharmacists and people with asthma and without asthma. Results. Both the CQ and HQ were shown to be reliable with Cronbach's alpha of 0.78 and 0.92 respectively. Both were also found to have good content, face, construct and discriminant validity. Conclusion. The CQ and HQ were shown to be simple, valid and reliable instruments for the assessment of asthma knowledge of consumers and health care professionals and to direct educational resources more appropriately. Future research will evaluate the utility of these instruments in clinical practice.