COPD: A $10 Billion Threat to Canada’s Healthcare System
by 2030, Warns Country’s Leading Lung Health Non-Profit

Breathe Change Summons Public and Policy Leaders, Healthcare Professionals, Advocates
and people Affected by Lung Disease to Amplify Their Voices in Support of Driving Progress

TORONTO, March 4, 2024 /CNW/ – Chronic obstructive pulmonary illness (COPD) looms as a $10 billion healthcare disaster in Canada by 2030 and, in line with the Lung Health Foundation (“LHF”), is poised to dismantle the Canadian healthcare system. LHF is the nation’s main non-profit group devoted to supporting and empowering people dwelling with lung circumstances throughout Canada.

In response to this disaster, LHF launches “Breathe Change”, a landmark sequence of three digital coverage boards starting on Thursday, March 7 at 1 pm to 2:30 pm ET with Building Respiratory Resilience: Partnership for Improved Care & Funding in COPD.

The inaugural discussion board will discover coverage avenues to assist Canadians going through probably the most prevalent type of lung illness, scrutinize the impression of present COPD interventions, probe entry gaps in COPD programming and help mechanisms, champion the crucial function of spirometry in early COPD detection and remedy, and consider the affect of healthcare personnel on COPD care high quality and outcomes. The session showcases the best-of-the-best in COPD and lung illness analysis, prognosis and remedy modalities, and coverage initiatives. Leading the knowledgeable COPD panel are Dr. Joshua Wald, Clinical Practice, Firestone Institute & Vice Co-Chair CTS COPD Assembly – COPD Steering Committee; Dr. Dawn Bowdish, Executive Director, Firestone Institute for Respiratory Health and Dr. Maya de Zoysa, Respirologist, West Nipissing General Hospital.

The session welcomes participation from all Canadians, spanning public and coverage spheres, healthcare practitioners, advocates, media and the tens of millions impacted by COPD. For additional particulars and to register for this free digital occasion, go to https://bit.ly/BreatheChange

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“COPD in Canada remains a grossly underfunded lung condition, with only 1 in 5 afflicted individuals even receiving the necessary diagnosis and care,” says LHF CEO Jessica Buckley. “COPD exacerbations currently rank as the number one cause of unplanned hospitalizations in Canada, creating a huge economic burden to our healthcare system. This serves as an urgent call-to-action for both federal and provincial health policy makers.”

“We Aim to Activate Change and Ignite a Transformative Shift in Perceptions of Lung Disease”

Urgency underscores Buckley’s message: “Through the largest series of policy forums on lung health in Canada, we aim to activate change and ignite a transformative shift in perceptions of lung disease, highlighting current policy efforts while propelling discussions toward new actionable solutions. The misconception that COPD solely stems from smoking must be dispelled, and our approach to caring for those impacted must evolve. Failing to do so risks compromising the quality of care for individuals dealing with this pervasive lung condition.”

Yet amid the challenges, Buckley says there’s a beacon of hope for COPD victims. “The Lung Health Foundation wages a daily battle for the respiratory well-being of all Canadians as incidences of COPD escalate in tandem with wildfires, climate change, radon and deteriorating air quality.”

Attendees also can safe spots for upcoming lung well being coverage boards: Timely Triumph: Accelerating Lung Cancer Care – A Call to Action for Public and Policy Leaders (March 21) and Halt the Haze: A Strategic Approach to Ending Youth Vaping in Canada (April 18).

The Breathtaking Truth about COPD

• Over half (53%) of COPD victims reside in long-term care or senior properties.

• 1 in 4 Canadians will develop COPD throughout their lifetimes. COPD, whereas continual and progressive, stays treatable.

• An extra 1 million Canadians with COPD languish undiagnosed and untreated.

• COPD ranks because the fifth main reason behind mortality in Canada.

• Nearly 900,000 Ontarians have been dwelling with COPD in 2019.

• COPD endures neglect, with merely 1 in 5 people receiving prognosis.

• The present tally of Ontarians who’re needlessly struggling is insupportable.

• 1 in 10 COPD sufferers confront hospitalization resulting from exacerbations yearly.

• Annual emergency division visits for COPD exacerbations plague 1 in 20 COPD sufferers in Ontario.

• While general hospital admission charges have waned since 2002, COPD affected person admissions have surged by 9.6% throughout the identical interval.

Accessible Lung Health Foundation Support Programs and Resources Available 24/7

For these navigating the labyrinth of lung illness, LHF gives an expansive array of disease-specific help applications and assets. Visitors to LHF’s digital portal get pleasure from free entry to Canada’s premier real-time repository of lung illness administration, schooling, and consciousness initiatives. Among the numerous programs supplied: the favored and in-demand digital Fitness for Breath, Smoking and Vaping Cessation Quash App, My Lung Coach and Lung Health Hotline, the place callers can speak on to Certified Respiratory Educators a couple of gamut of lung health-related points and challenges, together with bronchial asthma, COPD, lung most cancers, pneumonia, RSV, immunizations, inhalers, drugs, respiratory circumstances, and indoor and outside air high quality.

About Lung Health Foundation

The Lung Health Foundation is devoted to enhancing lung well being for all Canadians. Through a spread of neighborhood initiatives, grass-roots academic applications, analysis, and advocacy, the group elevates consciousness and fosters a compassionate setting for these affected by lung circumstances, together with their caregivers. Building on the legacy of the Ontario Lung Association, which for over a century served because the acknowledged chief, voice, and first useful resource in lung well being, LHF has expanded its efforts nationally. The Lung Health Foundation works tirelessly to stop lung illness, assist individuals handle their lung circumstances, and promote coverage change to create a world the place everybody can breathe with ease. The Lung Health Foundation encourages people to attach with its Lung Health Hotline for one-on-one recommendation from Certified Respiratory Educators. For help, name 1-888-344-LUNG, electronic mail info@lunghealth.ca, or interact in stay chat at www.lunghealth.ca. Visit us on Instagram @lunghealthfoundation, Facebook at lunghealthfoundation/, and on X at @LungHealthFdn.

SOURCE Lung Health Foundation

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