The South West’s first-ever children’s respiratory specialist clinic will be opening its doors in Australind this week thanks to Telethon funding.
Respiratory Care WA is officially launching its clinic on June 19, providing free vital lung health care and accurate asthma diagnoses to families across the South West.
Running from June 19 and 20, the clinic will support 11 local families, offering access to in-depth consultations and lung function testing delivered by a team of expert respiratory specialists, scientists and nurses.
Respiratory Care WA paediatric respiratory physician Dr Stephen Oo said every year in Australia, more than 13,500 children under the age of 15 were hospitalised due to asthma.
“Many of these cases could be prevented with early diagnosis, proper management and better understanding of the condition,” he said.
“We’re incredibly grateful to Telethon for helping us bring this life-changing care to regional families at no cost.”
The not-for-profit organisation has delivered more than 400 paediatric lung function tests this year.
Respiratory Care WA executive manager of strategic programs Rael Rivers said they were seeing a surge in the number of children needing help managing their asthma.
“Telethon’s support has helped us launch our Children’s Respiratory Hubs — but as demand continues to grow, we’ll need to expand these services to reach more families who are still searching for answers and in need of a clear diagnosis,” she said.
The organisation is planning another clinic in Bunbury later this year with families interested in attending encouraged to speak with their GP to arrange a referral.
“Places are limited, and the waitlist is already growing,” Ms Rivers said.
“We encourage families to reach out to their GP as soon as possible.”