Education in the CRCAA

The partners in the CRCAA have the skills and resources to make significant contributions to the training of graduates, developing validated educational tools, upskilling health professionals and enhancing community asthma education. The major components of this program are:

- Education Outreach
- Asthma in the Older Person
- Characterisation in lung health in older Australians

Education Outreach

Access to continuing education and training, as well as educational resources are essential to ensuring health professionals are able to provide the most effective asthma care. The CRCAA will develop, evaluate and disseminate validated clinical tools to enhance the treatment of older people with asthma and airways diseases and assist patients in achieving optimal adherence with medication and treatment regimens. These training activities will be undertaken in conjunction with the relevant professional bodies. Training will be provided to health professionals to enhance their capacity to accurately diagnose asthma and airways disease, using tools and strategies developed and validated within the CRCAA. Information generated by the Environmental Program will be disseminated through courses on indoor and outdoor air quality. This will be coordinated with the education programs run by NSW Health and the WA Departments of Health and Environment.

Community education takes place through local programs developed at each node. These include public seminars and lectures on aspects of asthma and chronic airways disease, focusing on better awareness and management.

Asthma in the Older Person

Professor Christine Jenkins Woolcock Institute	Associate Professor Jo Douglass Monash University/Alfred Hospital

The ageing population of Australia is increasingly recognised to have widespread social and healthcare ramifications, leading to the promotion of ageing as a National Health Priority Area. This is true in relation to respiratory diseases where asthma is an increasingly recognised problem in older people who now comprise over 70% of those dying of asthma. Asthma is common in the elderly and is often under diagnosed and under treated. Moreover older people with asthma have poorer quality of life and higher admission rates to hospital compared to younger individuals. The prevalence of COPD is also increasing and this condition overlaps with asthma in many instances in the elderly.

Specific Aims

To develop and disseminate new community education programs tailored to the specific requirements of older people with asthma.

To develop and disseminate a clinical tool for assessing and enhancing adherence with inhaled corticosteroids and management interventions amongst patients with asthma.

To develop and provide educational courses for community and health professionals based on these and other CRCAA projects.

Characterisation of Lung Health in Older Australians

Associate Professor Jo Douglass Monash University/Alfred Hospital	Professor Michael Abramson Monash University/Alfred Hospital

Ageing well and ageing productively is a National Research Priority. Respiratory disease is the third most common reason for a general practice consultation in people over 65 years.  In Australia, despite substantial public investment and improvement in overall mortality, people older than 65 constitute 64% of those dying of asthma. Over half a million Australians suffer from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), and this burden will increase with our ageing population. Respiratory function in older age groups is very poorly understood with resulting poor precision of the diagnosis of respiratory disease in older age-groups.

Associate Professor Jo Douglass, Professor Michael Abramson, Associate Professor Bruce Thompson and Associate Professor Greg King are conducting an epidemiological study to define normal respiratory function in Australians aged over 65. The study will provide normal values for use in calculation of spirometry, gas transfer and static lung volume measurements and determine the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and abnormal lung function in this age group.

Overall, this study will provide an internationally robust framework to assess lung health and disease in older Australians. The findings will inform health policy and the planning of health care services. The study will also demonstrate the utility of the forced oscillation technique in this age group and obtain normative data for future clinical applications.

Current Scholarships