Allergy sufferers can expect to have their conditions better diagnosed, managed and prevented with the establishment of a new national centre and council.
Announced by the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, Ged Kearney, federal funding has been allocated to establish a National Allergy Centre of Excellence and a National Allergy Council to address allergic disease and anaphylaxis in Australia.
Ms Kearney said the Council would focus on preventing allergies and supporting patients to manage their allergies.
“The Council will progress a patient-centred, ‘shared care model’ aimed at ensuring patients receive the right care, at the right time, from the right health professionals, in the right place,” Ms Kearney said.
“The funding package also includes $10.2 million, that will go to the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute to establish the Allergy Centre by expanding its Centre for Food and Allergies Research to centralise research on food, drug, vaccine, insect, and pollen allergies,” she said.
“The Centre will bring the best researchers together to analyse evidence for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment/management of allergies.”
Ms Kearney said Australia was known as the allergy capital of the world, with hay fever and allergies affecting 4.6 million Australians or around 19.3 per cent of the population.
“Chronic sinusitis affects a further two million people, or 8.4 per cent of the population,” she said.
“Drug allergies are reported by 4.7 per cent of the population, while food allergies affect about 10 per cent of infants, 4-8 per cent of children and two per cent of adults in Australia and New Zealand.”
