$2 million to improve Australia’s lung health

The Morrison Government is providing $2 million to improve education and training for Australian health practitioners to better diagnose, manage and care for people with lung conditions.

More than 7 million Australians are currently living with lung conditions. Chronic lower respiratory diseases are the fifth leading cause of death in Australia. Around 2.7 million Australians – 11 per cent of the population – have asthma.

The Government is providing $600,000 to the National Asthma Council (NAC) to support the delivery of best-practice training in asthma and linked chronic respiratory conditions to primary care health practitioners.

A grant of $1.4 million will allow the Lung Foundation Australia to develop and deliver education and training resources for health professionals to improve the diagnosis, management, and care of people with lung conditions. This includes a national educational framework for health professionals on lung health.

The funding is provided under the National Strategic Action Plan for Lung Conditions to support the development of lung condition education and training for health professionals. It is part of a broader $4 million commitment to support early implementation of the Action Plan.

Launched in February 2019, the Action Plan is a nationally co-ordinated effort to address the lung health of Australians. It identifies priority actions to help speed up diagnosis and improve treatment of lung cancer, asthma, COPD, occupational lung diseases and rare lung diseases, including cystic fibrosis.

Lung conditions impair people’s quality of life and ability to reach their full potential. Many people with lung conditions experience time away from school or work, an inability to stay in a job, difficulty participating in social activities, anxiety and depressive symptoms and disorders.

The funding I announce today is an important step in trying to alleviate these affects.