A new, bulk-billed respiratory clinic specifically for young children has been launched in West Perth to combat a significant surge in demand for paediatric asthma care and to help families navigate complex diagnoses.
Addressing a Critical Gap in Children's Healthcare
Respiratory Care WA has initiated a specialist, fortnightly clinic to provide free services for children under the age of six. The primary goal is to help more families access appropriate and timely treatment for conditions like early asthma, persistent wheeze, and chronic wet cough.
The clinic is overseen by paediatric respiratory and sleep specialist, Dr James Gibbons. He emphasised the diagnostic challenges presented by this young age group. "It can sometimes be difficult to figure out exactly what is happening, what is asthma, what isn't asthma, and how do we treat it," Dr Gibbons explained. "Many kids who are wheezing and coughing go on to develop asthma later in life, but others grow out of their symptoms. Or sometimes they don't have asthma or wheezing but other chronic infections."
A Family's Journey to a Diagnosis
The real-world impact of this new service is illustrated by the experience of two-year-old Greyson Allis. After countless visits to Perth Children's Hospital and repeated courses of antibiotics and steroids for wheezing and bronchiolitis, Greyson was referred to the clinic by his GP.
His mother, Kirah Allis, recalled that Dr Gibbons was immediately concerned. "He was grunting when he was breathing all the time, so we saw (the doctor) quite frequently initially," she said. A chest CT scan revealed that part of Greyson's lungs were collapsing, leading to a two-week hospital admission. After his third course of antibiotics in three months, he was fast-tracked for a bronchoscopy.
This procedure identified a condition called tracheobronchomalacia, which weakens the bronchial tubes, causing them to collapse and mimic asthma symptoms. Greyson is now on a three-month course of treatment and will be monitored as he grows for any signs of asthma. "We are in for a tough couple of years but it was a relief to finally get him treated," Mrs Allis said. "Respiratory Care WA was a lighthouse in the storm."
Meeting Growing Community Need
Following diagnosis and the creation of a management plan, most young patients at the clinic are discharged back to the care of their local GP. Rael River, the Acting Chief Executive of Respiratory Care WA, stated that demand for their services is rapidly increasing, particularly among children.
"For children, an accurate asthma diagnosis is critical," Ms River said. "When asthma is undiagnosed or poorly controlled, children may experience ongoing cough, wheeze and chest tightness. This can lead to poor sleep, missing out on sport, frequent school absences, and in severe cases, a life-threatening asthma flare-up."
She also issued a call for support, noting, "While we're grateful to be able to provide these vital services free to the community, continued growth means we'll need greater support from decision-makers and businesses to keep meeting the needs of Western Australians."
This new clinic complements the not-for-profit's existing children's respiratory hub for six to 17-year-olds, which receives support from Telethon.
