The National Asthma Council Australia is welcoming three new members, including a new chair, to lead the next chapter of its Australian Asthma Handbook Guidelines Committee and farewelling three long standing members.
The Australian Asthma Handbook Guidelines Committee is a small, multidisciplinary group chaired by a general practitioner, that oversees development of the national guidelines for asthma management, the Australian Asthma Handbook.
Joining the guidelines committee is general practitioner Professor Nick Zwar as the new chair, paediatric respiratory physician Dr Louisa Owens and respiratory, sleep and allergy physician Dr Gregory Katsoulotos.
They will replace outgoing Chair Professor Amanda Barnard, general practitioner (2010-20), Professor Adam Jaffé, paediatric respiratory physician (2016-20) and Associate Professor Janet Rimmer, allergist and respiratory physician (2010-20).
Professor Nick Zwar, a general practitioner for more than 30 years has a national and international reputation in health services research on prevention and management of chronic illness, with a focus on respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.
In addition to ongoing part-time work in clinical practice, he is a member of the COPD-X guidelines committee and chair of the Expert Advisory Group RACGP smoking cessation guidelines. Professor Zwar is also Executive Dean, Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, Bond University and adjunct Professor of General Practice in the School of Population Health at University of New South Wales.
Dr Joanna Wriedt, Chair of the National Asthma Council Australia Board said that the organisation was delighted to welcome Professor Zwar, Dr Owens and Dr Katsoulotos to the Guidelines Committee.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our outgoing members, especially Professor Amanda Barnard, who was the inaugural chair and founding member of the Australian Asthma Handbook.
“Professor Barnard was at the helm when the guidelines went from a paper version to online and she has been an invaluable leader of the committee for the past ten years. On behalf of the board, I would also like to express our deep gratitude to Associate Professor Janet Rimmer, who was also a founding member of the committee, as well as Professor Adam Jaffé for his vast contribution, especially on Version 2.0, which included the paediatric update.
“The three outgoing members have also been instrumental in recommending three new incoming guidelines committee members and we know that they will all bring their considerable expertise and passion to the next Australian Asthma Handbook update,” she said.
Further information and bios can be found on each of the guidelines committee members here: https://www.asthmahandbook.org.au/about/acknowledgements/people/committee
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For further information or an interview with a National Asthma Council Australia spokesperson, please contact:
Donna Le Page, Le Page PR
Mobile: 0429 825 703
Email: donna@lepage-pr.com.au
