You are here: Home / Research / Pharmacy Practice

Disease State Management

Research team

Professor Carol Armour, Professor of Pharmacy, Associate Dean (Medicine)

Associate Professor Ines Krass, Head, Discipline of Pharmacy Practice

Dr Sinthia Bosnic-Anticevich, Senior Lecturer, 2009 Thompson Fellow

Dr Parisa Aslani, Senior Lecturer, Pharmacy Practice

Dr Lorraine Smith, Senior Lecturer, Pharmacy Practice

Dr Bandana Saini, Lecturer, Pharmacy Practice

Dr Vicky Kritikos, Lecturer, Pharmacy Practice

Research summary

Each of the chronic diseases listed below, has a similar research trajectory:

  • Screening
  • Develop strategies
  • Design and present education
  • Follow-up

Living with asthma

Our research in asthma addresses the disease from many perspectives such as inhaler technique, education of patients, inhaler device design, and identifying inhibitory factors in the air tubes of people who do not have asthma. Our research has resulted in a new management model for people with asthma, which is effective in producing positive outcomes and health benefits for asthma sufferers. This DSM model includes a test of lung function, medication checks, asthma inhaler technique and trigger factors. Research continues into the area of inhaler technique, into education and into the training needs of health care professionals, as well as patients and consumers. Other research currently underway in the Discipline of Pharmacy Practice involves using proteomics to identify the inhibitory factors for translation into new therapies to prevent inflammation and remodelling of air tubes. This includes an anti-inflammatory strategy to reverse the development of airway remodelling by increasing the ant-inflammatory protein MKP-1.

Living with diabetes

A pharmacy diabetes management model to help manage type 2 diabetic patients has been developed and is being implemented in pharmacies around Australia. Pharmacists are now able to offer a Diabetes Medication Assistance Service (DMAS) supporting patients in self-management, assisting in monitoring the disease, and educating diabetics. During the DMAS, pharmacists help ensure adherence to medicines.

Living with Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Researchers are designing a pilot program to screen for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This will enable pharmacists to test lung function to identify ‘at risk’ patients, to follow these patients through to diagnosis, to support smoking cessation and to appropriately manage their disease. The result will be a more comprehensive disease state management model for COPD.

Living with sleep apnoea

Researchers in Sleep Apnoea have developed an online sleep disorder risk predictor examining the impact of lifestyle issues by gathering information on body mass index, smoking habits and contra-indications from multiple medicine use. A future project will involve GPs in a large scale screening survey to explore the impact of QUM in insomnia. Sleep health is a relatively new research area and findings have been incorporated into the Faculty’s Bachelor of Pharmacy degree curriculum.

Living with cardiovascular disease

Managing cardiovascular disease requires ongoing adherence and presistence to prescribed therapy which applies equally to the management of symptomless risk factors such as hypertension and dyslipidaemia, as well as complications such as ischaemic heart disease and heart failure. Non-adherence can result in suboptimal clinical benefit, medical and psychological complications, reduced patient quality of life and wastage of health care resources. Working with the Heart Foundation, we are developing strategies to bolster adherence.

Living with obesity

To be determined

HDR candidates

  • Bell, Carolyn A.
    Doctor of Philosophy (full-time)
    Submit date: February 2013
    "Involving community pharmacists in the prevention and management of tuberculosis in developing countries"
    Primary supervisor: Dr Bandana Saini
    Associate supervisor: Duncan
  • Cheong, Hui M.L.
    Doctor of Philosophy (full-time)
    Submit date: February 2013
    "Inter-professional practice in asthma care"
    Primary supervisor: Dr Sinthia Bosnic-Anticevich
    Associate supervisor: Professor Carol Armour
  • Fuller, Joanne M.
    Doctor of Philosophy (part-time)
    Submit date: July 2016
    llb||"The role of pharmacy in sleep-health']]
    Primary supervisor: Dr Bandana Saini
    Associate supervisor: Associate Professor Ines Krass
  • Hajipura, Jayshree P.
    Master of Philosophy (full-time)
    Submit date: July 2010
    "Validation of sleep disorder screening questionnaire via polysomnography including role of community pharmacy"
    Primary supervisor: Dr Bandana Saini
    Associate supervisor: Wong
  • Hatherly, Kristy LT
    Doctor of Philosophy (part-time)
    Submit date: February 2012
    "The impact of service delivery on young people with Type 1 diabetes"
    Primary supervisor: Dr Lorraine Smith
    Associate supervisor: Dr Susan Taylor
  • Liao-Loon, Hannah E.
    Master of Philosophy (part-time)
    Submit date: February 2013
    "Evaluation of medication aspects of Integrated Home Remote Monitoring with established respiratory ambulatory care services for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) within the Sydney West Area Health Service (SWAHS)"
  • Ovchinikova, Ludmila A.
    Doctor of Philosophy (full-time)
    Submit date: February 2012
    "Inhaler device use for people with asthma"
    Primary supervisor: Dr Sinthia Bosnic-Anticevich
    Associtate supervisor: Dr Lorraine Smith
  • Touman, Miriam
    Doctor of Philosophy (full-time)
    Submit date: February 2013
    "The role of the pharmacist in inhaler device technique"
    Primary supervisor: Dr Sinthia Bosnic-Anticevich
    Associate supervisor: Bashetti

Competitive research grants

  • "Improving asthma device use: Innovative models for inter-professional practice"
    Bosnic-Anticevich, Armour, et al.
    Australian Research Council, Linkage Project LP0882737
    $423,600
    2008 - -2010
  • "The Diabetes Pilot Programme: Tender for Stage 1"
    Krass, Armour, White, Smith, Luddington, Hughes, Peterson, Stuart
    Department of Health and Ageing
    $1,142,977
    2008 - 2010
  • "Role of pharmacists in sleep health: A screening, awareness and monitoring program"
    Saini, Wong, Grunstein, Krass
    Pharmacy Guild of Australia
    $194,104
    2007 - 2009
  • "Allergic rhinitis self-management program in community pharmacy"
    Smith, Seeto, Saini
    Pharmacy Guild of Australia
    $106,660
    2007 - 2009
  • "Identifying needs of people with asthma"
    Reddel, Bosnic-Anticevich
    Asthma Foundation NSW
    $40,000
    2008 - 2010
  • "A collaborative screening, referral and management process to improve health outcomes in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)"
    Allen, Saini, Australian Lung Foundation
    Pharmacy Guild of Australia
    $200,000
    2007 - 2009
  • "Development of a simple tool to identify attitudes and beliefs associated with poor adherence with asthma medications"
    Reddel, Sawyer, Rand, Bosnic-Anticevich
    Asthma Foundation NSW
    $50,000
    2008 - 2009
  • "Improving asthma control in general practice: Simple adherence strategies"
    Reddel, Sawyer, Usherwood, Smith
    NHMRC Project Grant #571053
    $443,433
    2009 - 2010

Recent publications

  1. Krass I, Delaney C, Glaubitz S, Kanjanarach T. Patient satisfaction with pharmacy diabetes state (DSM) management services: validation of an instrument’ Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy, 2009 5: 31-39.
  2. Krass I, Delaney C, Glaubitz S, Kanjanarach T. Measuring patient satisfaction with pharmacy diabetes state (DSM) services in community pharmacy, Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy, 5:1, 31-39, March 2009.
  3. Basheti I, Reddel HK, Armour CL, Bosnic-Anticevich S (2009). Long-term maintenance of pharmacists’ inhaler technique demonstration skills, American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 73:2, Article 32 April.
  4. Lehnbom E, Welch S, Ludington J, Bryant W, Brien JE (2009). Evaluation of a newly introduced insulin chart: Impact on patient management, Journal of Pharmacy Practice Research, 39:1, 45-9.
  5. Hatherly K, Overland J, Smith L, Taylor S, & Johnston C (2009). Providing optimal service delivery for children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes: A systematic review, Practical Diabetes International, 26(4), 154-159. DOI: 10.1002/pdi.1360.
  6. Chong JJ, Davidsson A, Moles R, Saini B (2009). What affects asthma medicine use in children? – Australian asthma educator perspectives, Journal of Asthma, 46:5, 437– 444,
    DOI: 10.1080/02770900902818371.
  7. Toumas M, Basheti IA, Bosnic-Anticevich SZ (2009). Inhaler technique: Training undergraduate pharmacy students, American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education.
  8. Cvetkovski B, Armour CL, Bosnic-Anticevich SZ (2009). Asthma Management in Rural NSW: Perceptions of Health Care Professionals and People with Asthma. Australian Journal of Rural Health.
  9. Roozendaal R, Krass I (2009). Development of an evidence-based checklist for the detection of drug related problems in type 2 diabetes, Pharmacy World & Science, DOI 10.1007/s11096-009-9312-1, Accepted 22 June 2009.
  10. Lehnbom E, Russell L, Boxall AM, Brien JE (2009). How to improve chronic disease management: The views of community pharmacists, Journal of Pharmacy Practice Research.
  11. Taylor S, Armour CL, Krass I (2008). Measuring consumer preference for models of diabetes care delivered by pharmacists. Value in Health (in progress).
  12. Chong J, Moles R, Saini B (2009). Issues in asthma medicines use in children: A literature review
  13. Hietbrink E, Saini B, Brown J, Moles R (2009). Children’s over-the-counter medicines: A review of common dosing issues
  14. Kritikos VS, Reddel HK, Bosnic-Anticevich SZ (2009). Pharmacists' perceptions of their role in asthma management and barriers to the provision of asthma services, Submitted July 2009, Thorax.