Welcome to the Hawaii COPD Coalition homepage!
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, "COPD," is a serious lung disease that makes breathing difficult. It is most often characterized by shortness of breath and a persistent cough. It includes both emphysema and chronic bronchitis. It is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States, and is expected to rise from fourth to third leading cause of death by 2020 in both the US and the world. Those over the age of 40 with a history of smoking are particularly at risk, however 1 in 6 people with COPD have never smoked. The best treatment for COPD is to stop smoking and avoid exposure to all lung irritants, including any form of smoke.
Dr. James Kiley, keynote speaker for the first anual Hawaii COPD Education Day in 2007, reports that "there are 12 million Americans diagnosed with COPD, and we estimate that another 12 million people have the disease and don't even know it. November, National COPD Awareness Month, is a great opportunity for advocates and health care professionals to educate the public and their patients about the disease."
This site will share resources available on COPD. Browse around and visit often as we will be regularly adding to and updating our website. Your thoughts and comments are welcome!
November is COPD Awareness Month
November is COPD Awareness Month both in the state of Hawaii and across the nation. COPD is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States and affects an estimated 24 million Americans. Dispite this a recent surfay by the National Institutes of Health indicated that only 64% of Americans have heard of COPD.
COPD Awareness Month Proclamation from Govenor Lingle
New Survey on COPD Awareness from the NIH
COPD Education Day 2008
Our second annual COPD Educaiton Day was a huge success! The Hawaii COPD Coalition would like to thank all of you who participated, hope to see you again next year!
Stay tuned for a recap of this year's COPD Education day.
Project SUCCESS - Free Lung Testing Clinics Oct 17- Dec 9
The Hawaii COPD Coalition and Longs Drugs are pleased to announce Project SUCCESS, a series of FREE lung testing clinics. The remaining clinics for 2008 will be held at Longs Winward City and Longs Kaneohe Bay. Please click here to download a flier with more information.
2008 Clinic Times and Locations
Longs Windward City
45-480 Kaneohe Bay Drive |
47-047 Kamehameha Highway |
Wednesday, November 19 |
Friday, December 9 |
The Hawaii COPD iin conjunction with Longs Drugs and Kaiser Hawaii are proud to anounce monthy Breathing Hui support group meetings. Please click here to download a flier with more information.
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