Shared Care for Allergy Bulletin November 2024 - Edition 9
Welcome to the 9th Edition of the Shared Care for Allergy Bulletin. We are excited to keep you informed about the latest developments with the Shared Care for Allergy project. Our goal is to improve access to quality care for people living with allergic conditions.
Latest progress
We are in the implementation phase of the Shared Care for Allergy project. The Shared Care for Allergy Implementation Roadmap outlines key activities that the National Allergy Council, the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), and Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia are progressing to improve access to care. Read on for the latest updates on these activities.
Consumer consultation to inform programs and resources
Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia (A&AA) continue to deliver free webinars and panel discussions on topics requested by consumers. The latest webinar, Understanding Insect Allergy, was held in November with expert presenter Dr Celia Zubrinich. The topic for the upcoming panel discussion is Travelling overseas with food allergy. All webinars and panel discussions are available on the A&AA website for on-demand access.
A&AA have updated the Eating out with food allergy email education series and are currently promoting this to consumers to help them dine out with confidence. Consumers can join the campaign.
Allergy training for regional and rural doctors and other healthcare professionals
ASCIA is facilitating education and training initiatives to upskill health professionals in allergy. Five education and training initiatives are being funded by ASCIA. Information about these initiatives is available on the ASCIA website.
- Associateship of Clinical Allergy (ACA) and Rural and Regional Clinical Allergy Network (R2CAN)
- The Regional and Rural Maternal Child Health Nurses Allergy Education Program
- ASCIA Food Allergy Dietitian Recognition Program and Certification Model
- A Comprehensive Mental Health Training Program for Allergy Health Professionals
- Virtual Immunology Clinic for General Practice Rural Initiative for Practice Education
The Associateship of Clinical Allergy is a new upskilling opportunity for rural and regional GPs and Paediatricians in Australia to enhance their skills in allergy medicine. Applications for the 2025 intake of the course are now open and close on Sunday 8 December 2024.
ASCIA, Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia and the National Allergy Council have participated in several medical, nursing, pharmacy, and dietitian conferences throughout 2024. By attending these conferences, it has been possible to reach a widespread audience of health professionals and promote the most relevant education, training and clinical resources. Interacting with conference attendees has also helped with obtaining user feedback on existing resources and the development of new resources.
Pilot of the Eczema Connect® program
Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia have commenced the Eczema Connect Program pilot, a research collaboration with Perth Children’s Hospital (PCH) and the University of Western Australia (UWA), and the first of the Allergy Connect® programs. This is an online program to empower parents of children with eczema by providing them with eczema management information and resources while they wait for an appointment with a PCH clinical immunology/allergy specialist or dermatologist.
Establish an allergy advice platform for healthcare professionals
The National Allergy Council has partnered with the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) to establish a national online service for rural doctors to get advice from a clinical immunology/allergy specialist. Rural doctors will be able to get the specialist advice and support they need to manage patients closer to home. The educational platform will also have a discussion board, learning cases, webinars, quizzes and resources. It is anticipated that the service will commence in February 2025.
Standards of care for transitioning from children’s allergy services to adult allergy services
The National Allergy Council has developed a national standard of care for the transition of allergy care from children’s to adult allergy services. The transition of care is for public hospitals and health services, but private health services can also use it. The standard outlines what should happen for children as they approach teen years, during their teen years and after they become an adult, to make sure they receive the right allergy care. The National Allergy Council and ASCIA are working together to prepare the Heads of Allergy Departments with guides and tools to support them to do this well. The Transition of care standard is available on the National Allergy Council website.
Allergic rhinitis (hay fever) education and support program
Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia’s allergic rhinitis campaign is underway for this spring. Patients who suffer from allergic rhinitis (commonly known as hay fever) can sign up for the email education series, which includes a FREE Starter Kit, packed full of useful information and resources.
If you are a health professional and have patients with allergic rhinitis, you can help to promote the campaign and encourage your patients to join the email education series. Find out how at Allergic rhinitis: patient resources.
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