To assess the magnitude of clinical inertia and its associated factors among adult patients with asthma on chronic follow-up at Jimma Medical Center, Ethiopia, from December 2021 to May 2022.

A hospital-based prospective observational study was conducted in Jimma Medical Center from 1 December 2021 to 30 May 2022.

135 patients with asthma who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were enrolled in the study consecutively and followed for 3 months.

Of 148 patients, 135 patients’ data were analysed. The mean (SD) age of the patients was 52.03 (±15.75) years. More than half (54.1%) of the study participants were men. Most of the study participants (68.9%) at the first and (70.4%) at the second visit, which is 3 months after the first visit, had clinical inertia, respectively. Comorbidity (adjusted OR (AOR) 3.35, 95% CI (1.15, 9.81), p

The burden of clinical inertia in this study was high at both visits. Comorbidity, duration of asthma of 5–10 years, moderate persistent and severe persistent asthma were identified as contributing factors to clinical inertia. Policymaker intervention to avoid clinical inertia is necessary to improve asthma treatment outcomes.