Inflammatory Bowel Disease – Health Professional Awareness and Training

Overview

The purpose of the grant opportunity is to develop and deliver training and education for health professionals, in relation to the treatment of patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). The grant strongly aligns with the priorities and actions outlined in the National Strategic Action Plan for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (the Action Plan), launched by the Australian Government in March 2019. The Action Plan is a nationally co-ordinated effort to address the effective care and management for people living with IBD in Australia. It focuses on actions that can bring tangible benefits to people’s individual care; reduce the burden of disease; and improve the care and quality of life for the people living with IBD and the community. General Practitioner (GP) collaboration in IBD care is very important, particularly in relation to management of concurrent conditions, access to other primary and specialist care, and IBD related monitoring and management. However, data suggests GP knowledge of IBD management is sub optimal. Barriers to well defined GP referral pathways include difficulty in diagnosis, lack of clear treatment guidelines and action plans, limited adherence to guidelines and poor referral quality. The objective of the grant opportunity is to:  - Improve GP capacity to support IBD patients through awareness, education and Continuing Professional Development.