The Many Healthy Lungs team
The Many Healthy Lungs project is looking at using breathing tests to help Aboriginal people who have sick lungs get the right medicine to feel better.
Our lungs get the good air called oxygen into our body. When your lungs are sick, you can’t get all the oxygen you need to have energy. When lungs don’t work properly it can make people cough or get short wind. Some lung sickness you might know is asthma, COPD or pneumonia.
Having sick lungs is one of the main reasons why Aboriginal people need to go to hospital. It is important for people who have sick lungs to do breathing tests. This will help doctors to give the right medicine to make kids and adults feel better.
The Many Healthy Lungs project tested the lungs of over three hundred people from the Perth and Kimberley regions. We are now working with other teams around Australia to learn as much as we can about how these tests can help doctors pick up lung sickness in Aboriginal people.
Want to know more?
Please contact us on:
Email: manyhealthylungs@telethonkids.org.au
Breathing tests - spirometry (big blow)
Breathing tests - DLCO
We would like to acknowledge and thank the Respiratory Medicine Department at the Royal Perth Hospital for creating these Strong Wulyan (Strong Lungs) demo lung function videos and allowing us to share them.
News and events
Broom trip
The team had the opportunity to travel up to Broome in August to support a round of Her Rules Her Game. It was fantastic to talk to the community about lung health, with kids having fun building a lung and testing how big their lungs are!
NAIDOC week
The Many Healthy Lungs team participated in the annual NAIDOC family day this year at Ashfield Reserve as well as the NAIDOC Netball Carnival at the State Netball centre.
Spirometry training in Broome
The team had a great couple of weeks conducting spirometry training at the Broome Regional Aboriginal Medical Service (BRAMS). We were very impressed with the enthusiasm from BRAMS staff and KAMS students to learn spirometry. Each of the staff and students picked up the technique and understanding of the test very quickly.
Many Healthy Lungs launch event
On Monday the 8th of October, the Many Healthy Lungs project officially launched at Derbarl Yerrigan in East Perth. The event was a great success with over 50 guests joining Derbarl Yerrigan staff and The Kids researchers for the occasion.