Asthma & COPD

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Noah and Noah

Awesome story from Noah's Mum - we are so glad we could be of help: "Our family are so grateful for the help we received from Asthma Waikato for our 4 year old Son Noah. Prior to having help we had constant issues with poor Noah's coughing, sleeping disruptions, and him generally being miserable. We were using the spacer completely wrong and he was not receiving any of the inhalers. Now we have nailed it and he is much happier! Thanks to Asthma Waikato." From Brydie, Samuel and Noah Donaldson....

Bronchiolitis or Asthma

Bronchiolitis: What is it?Bronchiolitis is a chest infection caused by a virus, which affects the small airways of the lungs. Who does it affect?85% of cases in NZ affect babies under 12 months. What are the symptoms? Cough is the main symptomWheezeRunny noseIncreased work of breathing How does it differ asthma? When the doctor listens to the child’s chest with a stethoscope, he/she is able to tell by what they can hear, whether it is more likely asthma or bronchiolitis, eg. the presence or ab...

The Prescription Subsidy Scheme

All prescriptions you collect between the dates of 1 Feb to 31 Jan every year are counted. When you reach the 20 threshold, you no longer have to pay for further prescriptions. You can even get your partner's and children's scripts to count towards this total too! (children aged 14-18, as under 13 are free anyway so they don't count). You can find out more here. Talk to your pharmacist about it too: https://www.health.govt.nz/…/me…/prescription-subsidy-scheme...

Coughing Much?

A cough can be one of the symptoms of asthma. And kids with asthma can often get a cough at night. But sometimes a cough can be caused by something else. Sometimes kids have coughed for so long the family can often get used to it and accept it as ‘normal’ for that child. We often hear 'yes, he/she cough, that's just them'. The thing to remember is that it isn’t ‘normal’ for a child to cough consistently, during the day or at night. The question has to be asked, what is causing the coug...

Meet Melenaite!

Wow, she is experiencing great relief from her asthma symptoms since she has been regularly taking her preventer morning and night every day. Melenaite and her brother were so excited to get a bag of goodies and a stamp saying ASTHMA STAR. S.T.A.R - stands for "Spacer' "Technique and Triggers" "Action plan" "Rinse and spit or Reliever"....

The low down on what to expect when you take your child to the Emergency Department

We get a lot of parents who hesitate to take their child to the Emergency Department with asthma because they feel when they get there, the child is just given more reliever with the spacer, there’s just a whole lot of waiting and nothing is actually ‘done’. I have to admit, until I understood the process, I thought this too. It’s important for children having asthma flare-ups to receive timely care, so I hope that explaining the process will help a little for others. Here goes. Asthma m...

Nose Spray

DID YOU KNOW you're not supposed to snort your nasal spray, nor aim it directly upwards?  Most people using a nasal spray are using it incorrectly - they aim the nozzle straight upwards then squirt and snort. This results in the medicine simply dripping down the back of your throat and giving you a nasty taste in your mouth as well as a fizzy feeling head. You should be pointing the nozzle towards your ear on the same side, and the idea is to coat the inside of your nostril membrane, not sq...

Monalisa

Meet Monalisa! Monalisa has had such trouble with her asthma in the past and has been so very sick, so many times. However, since she has been taking her preventer morning and night every day, over the last few months, her whole world has changed. She has been completely well for months now and has not had to use her reliever at all. Well done Monalisa and family - we are really proud of you and really happy that you are doing so much better....

Spirometry Course - 29th and 30th Aug 2019

Our seriously in demand Spirometry Course is back on for another run. Get in touch NOW if you want a place on this course. It is already being booked out! Designed and run by a Clinical Physiologist, it's a must have in your arsenal of courses....

Spirometry Course - 25th and 26th Jul 2019

Our seriously in demand Spirometry Course is back on for another run. Get in touch NOW if you want a place on this course. It is already being booked out! Designed and run by a Clinical Physiologist, it's a must have in your arsenal of courses....

Spirometry Course - 4th and 5th Jul 2019

Our seriously in demand Spirometry Course is back on for another run. Get in touch NOW if you want a place on this course. It is already being booked out! Designed and run by a Clinical Physiologist, it's a must have in your arsenal of courses....

Spirometry Course - 13th and 14th Feb 2019

Our seriously in demand Spirometry Course is back on for another run. Get in touch NOW if you want a place on this course. It is already being booked out! Designed and run by a Clinical Physiologist, it's a must have in your arsenal of courses....

Spirometry Course - 5th and 6th Dec 2018

Our seriously in demand Spirometry Course is back on for another run. Get in touch NOW if you want a place on this course. It is already being booked out! Designed and run by a Clinical Physiologist, it's a must have in your arsenal of courses....

Skipper's Journey With Asthma

“This is the story of my now 3 year old daughter Skipper, and our journey so far with asthma."...

Testimonial - Mackenzie

“Thanks heaps for a very informative session. Was so great to get such a wide range of information to help us with Mackenzie’s asthma and have such a good length of time to go through things thoroughly (often so rushed during Drs visits). Thanks heaps Yehudit, I feel much better informed and prepared to continue with MacKenzie’s asthma journey!”Parent of Mackenzie, 5.7.18...

P.Chesham's Testimonial

“Fabulous session. The GP and ED never gave me the info and knowledge of how to deal with the lead up and after care of symptoms. I now realise I should have been to A & E more than I have!”P Chesham. 25.6.18...

Lisa's Testimonial

“We saw Yehudit Henson from Asthma Waikato today for information for my daughter Ruby Clarke and I am absolutely impressed with the service we received. She explained everything really thoroughly and answered lots of questions that I had. The room had heaps of things to entertain my girls being under 5. Thanks so much I really appreciate it.”Lisa Clarke 21.6.18...

Spirometry Course - 23rd and 24th Oct 2018

Our seriously in demand Spirometry Course is back on for another run. Get in touch NOW if you want a place on this course. It is already being booked out! Designed and run by a Clinical Physiologist, it's a must have in your arsenal of courses....

P.Magdalene's Testimonial

“Our session was really comprehensive, informative and useful. Everything was explained in detail (with diagrams etc) i.e. asthma as a condition, technique for using meds including inhalers and the next steps were also explained e.g. letter to GP with recommendation for SMART protocol, plus follow-up phone call to us to check progress. We came away with new spacers and feeling confident that symptoms/condition was fully understood and a plan was being collaboratively developed. An incredibly c...

Anneka's Testimonial

“Great information provided. It was all very thorough and asked if I had any questions along the way. Great with the kids who were getting very scratchy and tired. I learnt a lot about asthma which I hadn’t been informed before. Highly recommend Asthma Waikato! Look forward to going forward with Kiana’s plan.”Anneka and Kiana de Thierry. 7.6.18...

Gali's Testimonial

"Thank you so much the nurse was so lovely, helpful, great with my boy who has ADHD. Absolutely happy with the service provided. Thank you so much. I now have some strategies to help my son can’t thank you enough.”Gali Hindmarsh 24.5.18...

I am an ASTHMA STAR

The Asthma STAR system is primarily for use with children who have been prescribed a metered dose inhaler (MDI/puffer). There are some key points that we need families to take home with them after their consult with us. Often we give a lot of information and education in one sitting which has the potential to be a little overwhelming.  So, to help with this, we have developed the Asthma STAR system. The letters of STAR stand for different key messages...

Catherine's Testimonial

“I found Asthma Waikato very helpful they gave me information on things I didn’t even know come under asthma. I would recommend this service to anyone that needs info or help with asthma. Thank you.”Catherine. 30.4.2018...

Colouring Competition to celebrate World Asthma Day / Balloon Day May 1st 2018

Did you know? 1 in 7 kids have asthma. 550,000 school days are lost to asthma every year? World Asthma Day / Balloon Day is a day to pause and think about your breathing and spare a thought for those who have no choice but to think about it constantly. We are running a colouring competition for 0-10 year olds to enter. BlackPear have sponsored the competition design work and The Warehouse Hamilton Central have sponsored 2 prize packs. To enter, download the colouring competition page from b...

Spirometry Course - 18th and 19th Apr 2018

Our seriously in demand Spirometry Course is back on for another run. Get in touch NOW if you want a place on this course. It is already being booked out! Designed and run by a Clinical Physiologist, it's a must have in your arsenal of courses....