Respiratory clinical update series – event 3

The ‘Respiratory Clinical Update’ series seeks to update GPs and practice nurses with new clinical evidence in the areas of:

• chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• lung cancer
• asthma, including an education session related to inhaler technique and action plans for asthma patients in the general practice setting
• obstructive sleep apnoea

Attendees will benefit from hearing from local specialists from the Royal Hobart Hospital to better understand local referral pathways and supports for their patients.

This third event will focus on:

• 6.30pm – 7.30pm Clinical update on asthma
• 7.30pm – 8.00pm Asthma education:  inhaler technique and action plans

It will be delivered by Dr Ben Johnson – Registrar, Respiratory Medicine, Royal Hobart Hospital and Lyn Reid, Clinical Nurse Consultant.

Asthma is a heterogenous inflammatory disease of the airways. Treatment of asthma requires constant reassessment and stepping up and stepping down of treatment as required. Recent changes to guidelines tend more towards early inhaled corticosteroids rather than short acting beta agonists alone treatment. Ben will discuss how to manage asthma and when and who to refer to clinic, as well as recent changes in asthma management. 

Respiratory inhalers are the cornerstone of treatment in asthma and COPD. Sub-optimal adherence to asthma therapies increases the burden of symptoms and exacerbations. With the ever-expanding landscape of inhaler availability, Lyn will talk about optimising inhaler technique and adherence, common types of handling errors, and factors that can enhance drug delivery.  

Lyn is a Clinical Nurse Consultant within the Department of Respiratory Medicine at the Royal Hobart Hospital. She will discuss the development of written asthma action plans appropriate to the individual. Included in asthma self-management is the recognition of deteriorating symptoms, how to adjust treatment in response to deterioration and when to seek medical advice.  

Further events in this series will run on each Wednesday in May, 2021, as noted below:

The Respiratory clinical update series information sheet 2021 can be downloaded and printed for circulation.