World Asthma Day is the annual awareness campaign hosted by the Foundation to educate Kiwis about one of New Zealand’s most prevalent respiratory diseases. It takes place in May each year.

The theme for World Asthma Day 2022 was ‘Closing the Gaps in Asthma Care’. Research has shown that Māori and Pacific peoples, and those living in poverty, are more likely to have asthma, to need hospital treatment for asthma and to die from asthma.

The Asthma and Respiratory Foundation is committed to closing the gaps in asthma care and management. Here is some of what we are doing:

  • Providing free digital and print resources in Te Reo Māori, Samoan, Tongan and Simplified Chinese.
  • Providing Heremana Te Kōpūtōtara, a musical show in Te Reo Māori, educating tamariki and kaiako on asthma.
  • Providing asthma guidelines for health professionals with practical advice on how to support Māori and Pacific people manage their asthma.
  • Providing research on how asthma and other respiratory diseases are affecting Kiwis.