Asthma is a complex and highly prevalent chronic disease affecting approximately 11% of the Australian population.^1,2

Many people with asthma in Australia do not have control of their condition due to a variety of reasons, including gaps in appropriate prescribing of preventer medications, poor adherence to therapy, poor inhaler technique and lack of regular and structured assessment to identify patients with poor asthma control. ^3-6

In a survey of Australians with asthma ≥16 years old, combination ICS/LABA constituted over 80% of total ICS use, but only 54% reported well-controlled symptoms. ⁶

Furthermore, the National Asthma Council recently updated their Australian Asthma Handbook to Version 3.0 in September 2025, which included extensive key updates to clinical guidance on the diagnosis and management of asthma in adults. ^7,8

In this CPD activity, revisit the current management of adult patients with Asthma against the updated Australian Asthma handbook, and implement evidence-based management using pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions.

This is an RACGP CPD and CPD Home-accredited module with an allocated 3 hours of Education Activities (EA), 10 hours of Measuring Outcomes (MO), and 2 hours of Reflective Practice (RP) under the RACGP 2026-28 CPD program.

References:

1. Yoo J et al. Aust J Gen Pract. 2019;48(4):188-192.
2. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Chronic respiratory conditions: Asthma (18 February 2026). Available at: https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/chronic-respiratory-conditions/asthma
3. Reddel HK et al. Med J Aust. 2015;202(9):492-497.
4. Serhal S et al. Pharmacy (Basel). 2020;8(4):183.
5. Wark PAB et al. J Asthma. 2023;60(4):727-736.
6. Reddel HK et al. Respirology. 2017;22(8):1570-1578.
7. National Asthma Council Australia. Australian Asthma Handbook, Version 3.0 (2025). Available at: https://www.asthmahandbook.org.au/
8. National Asthma Council Australia. Australian Asthma Handbook: What’s new. Available at: https://www.asthmahandbook.org.au/whats-new.

All websites accessed in March 2026.