WORLD ASTHMA DAY-6th MAY 2015

The partner organisation Asthma and Chest Care Foundation contacted Breathe Easy Foundation to support the four days event for this year. It was planned to raise the awareness amongst the public, schools, Universities, and all professionals. The awareness raising started on Saturday the 2^nd of May with a match titled “ WALK FOR ASTHMA’’ by which T Shirts and caps were given out to the participants. The walk started at the main entrance of Obafemi Awolowo Teaching Hospitals to nearly the end of the town towards Ibadan which is over 5 miles distributing leaflets and posters.

The public lecture was on the 6^th of May. This was attended by over 100 people which included students from 14 secondary schools and 2 Primary Schools. There were student nurses, medical students and different professionals. Over 30 patients were amongst the audience.

There were presentations as follows:

1. Global Perceptive of Asthma.
2. What is Asthma and how it can be prevented?
3. How Asthma could be controlled-Patients’ perceptive.
4. Update on the work of Breathe Easy Foundation.

The Breathe Easy Foundation donated ventolin and becotide inhalers and also peakflows. Each school was given a pack of information plus two Peakflows. The translated version of Asthma information from English to the Yoruba (the native language) by BEF was also distributed. It was a very informative day and it was hoped that the schools representatives would pass information to fellow students.

The professional accreditation lecture was on the 8^th which covered various topics such as:

• The challenges of Acute Asthma
• Epidemiology, Pathogenesis and Pathology of Acute Severe Asthma
• Recognising acute and life threatening asthma
• Diagnosis, management and critical pathway for emergency treatment in resource poor setting.
• Preventing acute severe asthma and reducing the risk of death.

The morbidity and mortality due to asthma and allergies are very high in Nigeria. The events had a great impact as members of the public were contacting the BEF Trustee for more information and inhalers. She referred those with Asthma to OAUTH Asthma and Chest Clinic. The problem which was highlighted was that people did not want to attend hospital because of their financial situation, as they have to pay for their care.