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September: QI Activity

Health Topic: Asthma

National Asthma Week runs from 1 - 7 September, 2024

The peak time for asthma is is mainly Spring but can extend to December during the grass pollen season.

National Asthma Week provides an opportunity for general practices in our region to focus on patients impacted by asthma to promote the importance of asthma management such as ensuring correct medication use and device technique and having an up to date asthma action plan.

  • Around 2.8 million (11%) people in Australia were estimated to be living with asthma in 2022.
  • It accounted for 2.5% of total disease burden and 35% of the total burden of disease for all respiratory conditions in 2023.
  • In 2020–21, an estimated $851.7 million was spent on the treatment and management of asthma, representing 0.6% of total health system expenditure and 19% of expenditure for all respiratory conditions.
  • It is also the leading cause of total burden in children aged 1–9 years and disproportionately affects Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
  • In 2018–19, around 128,000 (16%) First Nations people were estimated to be living with asthma.

In our region, 56,560 people are impacted by asthma and it accounts for 10.4% of presentations.

Step 1: Identify your QI Measures

Start by considering which of the relevant QI measures you will work towards in support of asthma management. Measures you could choose from that are relevant for patients who have or are at risk of having asthma:

  • Patients with Asthma Dx with no smoking status recorded.
  • Patients with Asthma Dx who are regular or irregular smokers with no spirometry recorded in the last 12 months.
  • Patients with Asthma Dx with no CDM GPMP claimed in the last 12 months.

Learn more about these QI Measures

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Step 2: Undertake your QI activity

We've prepared a simple worksheet that can help you work through activity you will need undertake to meet the Improvement Measure you have selected.

1. Identify your plan, using the Model for Improvement:

  • What are you trying to accomplish? eg. increase the proportion of patients with an Asthma diagnosis have had a CDM GPMP recorded in the last 12 months
  • How will we know that change is an improvement? Set a specific measure or SMART goal, eg. increase the proportion of regular (active) patients with asthma who have had a CDM GPMP claimed at the practice in the last 12 months by 15% by the end of the PIP quarter
  • What changes can you make that will result in improvement? Come up with your own ideas or consider ours below.

2. Some possible ideas you could choose to do:

  • Conduct a team meeting to ensure all relevant team members are aware of the PIP QI focus for the quarter and highlight the importance of asthma patients having a Chronic Disease Management Plan completed every 12 months.
  • Complete a CAT4 search for eligible patients and recall those who have not had their CDM GPMP completed in the last 12 months.
  • Regularly use Pen CS CAT4 and/or Topbar to track and report the percentage of eligible patients in this cohort. Save and document these reports throughout the PIP quarter (ensure all staff are aware that a PDSA is to be completed and filed each quarter should your practice be audited).
  • Display Asthma awareness materials in the clinic waiting room.
  • Use PHN Exchange to track Asthma GPMP trends over time to see if we are continuing to improve.
  • Utilise Topbar MBS app. Consider creating a specific CAT Prompt Topbar notification for this patient cohort.

3. Document your actions

  • Use our PDSA Worksheet to document your activity. It also walks you through how to complete a CAT4 search and use PHN Exchange to track asthma GPMP trends.

4. Resources to help you

Need PHN support?

Our Primary Care Liaison team is available to provide one-on-one support.

Call 07 4615 0900 or contact us online

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Last updated 22 August 2024