Compass Kids Clinic

We are pleased to see that peanut oral immunotherapy (OIT) will be offered to infants under 12 months of age through the Queensland Children's Hospital in association with the ADAPT OIT program later this year. This is a step forward for wider access to food OIT.
Compass Immunology and Compass Kids Clinic has offered peanut desensitization since 2018 for children under 8 years of age. If your child has peanut allergy, we may be able to assist.
Dr Kathryn Heyworth is our clinical leader in this program. Please request an appointment to discuss this further.

Invitation to participate in food allergy prevention focus group sessions

The National Allergy Council will be hosting online focus (discussion) group sessions in July 2024.

Who are we looking for? We invite you to register your interest to participate in our research study if you:
have a young infant (up to 10 months old) and have a family history of allergy, or
have a child with food allergy and are pregnant or are planning to have another child, or
are a health professional who provides advice to parents about infant feeding.

Food allergy prevention project focus group sessions - National Allergy Council KABAM – Allergy survey for teens and young adults

We are looking for an experienced Registered Nurse to join our friendly team. Please share with someone you think would be great in this role https://www.seek.com.au/job/76247873?ref=direct-share-hirer-jobs-list

Christmas and New Year Holiday Closure

Compass Kids Clinic is closing Friday the 22nd of December at 12pm. We reopen Tuesday the 2nd of January at 8am.

During the holiday break our phones and email are not monitored. If you require medical assistance in this period please see your GP, and for any urgent or emergency health problems please seek urgent care from the ambulance and your local hospital.

Best wishes from the Compass Immunology Clinic team for a joyous, healthy and safe holiday season.

Information for patients and families wishing to transfer their care from Allergy Medical Group (AMG).

We are aware that Allergy Medical Group is discontinuing clinical services from Friday 29th of September. If you are a patient or caregiver wishing to transfer care to an Allergist at Compass Immunology Clinics, could you please consider the following:

Please follow any information you have been provided by AMG to obtain a copy of your clinical record, and to obtain your allergen immunotherapy kit if relevant. Please see the AMG website: Important Notice: Closure of Allergy Medical Group

Please see your GP to discuss your health care situation, and and if recommended, obtain a referral to one of Compass Immunology Clinic’s Allergists.

Please contact us to arrange an appointment. We anticipate that our telephone lines may be very busy over this period, so we recommend you initially submit your request and information via our online form at: https://form.jotform.com/222647110163042 Please mention in your submission that you have been a patient of AMG. We will then be able to get in contact with you to arrange a suitable appointment.

https://allergymedicalgroup.com.au/

Important Notice: Closure of Allergy Medical Group Dear Patients, After careful consideration it is with a heavy heart that we inform you that Allergy Medical Group will be ceasing its operations as of Friday, 29th September 2023. This decision has not been made lightly, and we understand the impact it will have on you, our valued patients. We want....

Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia Health Educators are hosting an online support group meeting for parents and carers of infants with delayed (non-IgE mediated) allergies to cow’s milk or other foods e.g. Food protein-induced allergic proctocolitis (FPIAP) and Food protein-induced enteropathy (FPE). We haven’t included Food Protein Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome (FPIES) as we will be hosting a FPIES support group in 2024.

The support meeting will take one hour. Our Health Educators and Accredited Practicing Dietitian Kathy Beck will be available to answer any general questions that you may have. Individual medical advice cannot be provided.

Registration is essential as attendees will be CAPPED AT 30. These sessions will not be recorded.

Events details:
What: Support group for parents and carers of infants with delayed (non-IgE mediated) allergies to cow’s milk or other foods
Time: 8:00pm AEST
Date: Thursday 24 August 2023
Where: Online on zoom – details to follow once registered

Register here 👉 https://bit.ly/3E0urzH

Do you have a child with food allergy at childcare? Ask your centre if they are using these Anaphylaxis Risk Minimisation Strategies. These strategies provide childcare centres and parents with risk minimisation strategies to help reduce the risk of allergic reactions.

Download now: https://ow.ly/pwM650P2ZvP

Global Access to Psychological Services for Food Allergy (GAPS)
Please take part in an international study on Global Access to Psychological Services for Food Allergy (GAPS). They are looking for parents or caregivers of children with food allergy or adults with food allergy to take part in paid online interviews.

Are you an RN looking for a wonderful family-friendly new position?

There are exciting opportunities to join us in this dynamic field of allergy and immunology care.


The Role

Currently we are seeking Registered Nurses for permanent part-time or full-time positions to work 2 to 5 days a week (32 to 76 hours per fortnight), with hours negotiable. The role will be situated at our Grange and Greenslopes clinics.

As a nurse in our practice, you will be responsible for:

Subcutaneous immunotherapy injections

Initiation of sublingual immunotherapy

Xolair and Dupixent injections

Intradermal drug allergy testing

Food challenges

Patch testing

Spirometry and asthma care

Patient education and advice for eczema, rhinitis, asthma, food allergy etc.

Stock control

Compass Immunology Clinics offer:

Modern medical facility

On the job training in a supportive team environment

Professional development opportunities

Family-friendly hours

No weekend or night shift work

Uniform and PPE as required

You

You are:

Registered with AHPRA and authorized to work in Australia as a qualified RN

keen to up-skill and maintain current best practice clinical care

experienced with managing acute medical emergencies including anaphylaxis

able to work collaboratively as well as independently

have proven competence in patient assessment and time critical clinical judgement

competent with identifying and managing deteriorating patients

effective and timely in communication within a team and with patients

comfortable with children and have some paediatric nursing experience ideally

customer focused and ensure patient care as the top priority

a pro-active person who continuously seeks ways to improve and streamline processes

possessing attention to detail with a continuous focus on patient safety

a dedicated team player who positively contributes to the work culture

approachable, reliable, and dependable

willing to go the extra mile when required

holding a driver’s license

Paediatric and/or Emergency Department experience will be highly regarded.

Leaders in Immunology and Allergy Care

Compass Immunology Clinic represents the largest collaboration of specialist Immunologist and Allergists, GP Allergists, Allied Health, and Nurses within Australia. We pride ourselves on our cohesive supportive team culture and the high level of personalized care provided. We have two primary locations, Greenslopes and Grange in Brisbane, as well as two satellite clinics in Toowoomba and Sunshine Coast.


We will provide all training in specialized immunology and allergy procedures as needed for the individual selected.

The health and happiness of our patients are at the forefront of everything we do. We strive every day to exceed patient expectations and our main aim is to deliver the highest standard of care and utmost peace of mind.

Our people are the pride of our clinics. Our team consists of handpicked staff who share our core values: Passionate about Improving Lives – Excellence in Patient Experience – Sharing Knowledge to Make a Difference – One Enthusiastic team.

To learn more about us visit https://www.compass.clinic

Please direct all applications responses with attached resumes and referee details to [email protected]

Exciting news of this book release next week.

Are you a school aged teen (aged 10-18) living with severe allergy? We are hosting a FREE Allergy 250K youth camp on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland from Saturday 11 March to Sunday 12 March 2023! The overnight camp will be located approximately 1 hour north of the Brisbane CBD. There is also the option to attend on Saturday only.

There will be a range of team outdoor activities where you will develop new skills and make new friends. We will also run allergy information sessions hosted by health professionals. For more information visit: https://www.nationalallergystrategy.org.au/news/allergy-250k-camp-sunshine-coast-march

If you would like to participate, please contact Sandra Vale, National Allergy Council Manager, [email protected] by Friday 17 February. Places are limited, so please register early.

To see highlights from previous camps visit: https://allergy250kteens.org.au/youth-camps/

Receptionist Wanted! Come join our team!
Experience valued but not necessary.
Our busy clinics have an opportunity for an organised, enthusiastic & well-presented Medical Receptionist. Part-time or full-time
The successful applicant must:
- Have received at least 2 Covid vaccines
- Be able to work at both Greenslopes and Grange clinics
- Be well presented, mature and have a solid work ethic
- Have an eye for attention to detail
- Be able to work in a team environment and independently
If this sounds like you, then we would love to hear from you!
Please include your availability Monday to Friday in your cover letter.
Wage dependent on level of experience.
Email [email protected] to apply or for further information

Parents are unaware of the risks of using commercial baby food pouches as a main source of nutrition.
________________________________________
Regular use of baby food pouches poses nutritional and developmental risks for babies and toddlers, especially if the food is sucked straight from the pouch and used as a main source of nutrition, experts have warned.

Parents of children under two years need to be aware of the importance of a varied, iron-rich diet once solids are part of the child’s diet.

“If parents were aware of potentially what harms they [food pouches] were doing, I think most would stop using them.” said Professor Tim Green.

Speaking at the Infant and Nutrition Council Australia & New Zealand meeting in Wellington this month, Professor Tim Green and Dr Netting, of the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, presented findings of the 2021 Australian Feed Infants and Toddlers Study (OzFITS), the first nationwide survey of the feeding practices of children under two years of age.
The research was also published this month in the journal Nutrients.

Researchers compared nutritional and textural properties of commercial infant and toddler foods available in Australia with established infant feeding guidelines and found many of the purees in squeeze pouches they looked at were inconsistent with guidelines – being sweet, smooth and low in iron.
Pouches comprised half of the 414 products they looked at, while one-third were discretionary foods. Dietary guidelines recommend “first foods” be rich in iron with no added sugars and that nutrient-poor discretionary foods are to be avoided.

Dr Netting said the commercial baby food market had changed dramatically in the past decade. “Very little is available in jars now, the majority of baby foods are in pouches,” she said. “Eighty per cent were fruit-based, even the savoury ones had some fruit in them. And most of them were really low in iron,” she told The Medical Republic.

“I think I think parents probably think that because they’re sitting next to the baby formula [on the supermarket shelf], which is really highly regulated, they might think that the baby foods are highly regulated in the same way, which they’re not – they come under a totally different section in the Food Standards Code.”

The survey also found that 90% of older infants and 25% of toddlers had inadequate iron intakes. Dr Netting said pouches were generally low in iron, but there were other health concerns with using them as a main source of nutrition.

“The aim of starting solid foods is actually to get the children used to eating the foods that the rest of the family eat,” said Dr Merryn Netting. This also means including all the allergens the family eats such as peanut, tree nuts, sesame, egg and fish.

“They need to get used to eating, they need to transition to lumpy foods, they need to get used to eating some iron rich foods, including meat, and they need to get used to eating vegetables even though they taste bitter and they might prefer to eat fruit.”
She said the development of feeding skills and oral musculature could not be optimal if a child was sucking most of their food from a pouch. Using a spoon, picking up food and putting it in the mouth, chewing and moving food around the mouth was an integral part of early development and contributed to speech and fine motor development.

“I think there’s also an obesity risk because drinks are dealt with differently by the gastric emptying system compared to chewing and eating food,” she said. “With the pouch you are not getting the satiety signals that you would get if you were chewing on a food.”

Dr Netting said the survey found about half of the people that were using pouches were allowing their kids to suck them directly from the spout. While most of the baby food pouches have written instructions recommending the food be served in with a spoon and not consumed directly from the pouch, some did not.

(This is an edited version of an article by Amanda Sheppeard in The Medical Republic)

Oral food challenges are an important part of our care. We are one of the few private clinics offering this service and our clinicians have extensive experience in caring for children undergoing these tests

What is an oral food challenge (OFC)? An OFC is a method for determining if a person has a specific food allergy.

⭐ When might I be offered an OFC?
⭐ What does an OFC involve?
⭐ Do I have to keep eating the food after a negative oral food challenge?
⭐ How long will I have to be at the hospital for the challenge?

We answer your questions in our Allergy Matters blog: http://ow.ly/4nko50L2I9Z

We understand many people are having trouble contacting us by telephone.
We are currently experiencing technical faults with our phone system and the best point of contact is via the reception email ([email protected]) or for new patients, the new patient inquiries form https://form.jotform.com/222647110163042

New psychologist at Compass Kids Clinic.

We are delighted to welcome Sabrina Yang. Sabrina Yang is a Brisbane based Educational and Developmental Psychologist who has worked with children and adults of all ages for more than 10 years. Sabrina has practiced across a range of settings including public hospitals (Children, Maternity, and Adult), private clinics, and education. She is experienced in working with individuals across the lifespan in managing a range of emotional and psychological concerns.

Sabrina is passionate about supporting individuals through the challenges of life. Area of interests for Sabrina including allergy-related anxiety, health-related anxiety and depression, parental adjustment and transitioning through stages of a child’s development, adjustment difficulties related to health diagnosis, and the connection between physical health and emotional distress. Sabrina is also passionate about supporting individuals with difficulties in emotional regulation, social relationship and communication. Furthermore, she has personal experience of managing allergies and anaphylaxis with her own family.

Sabrina’s therapeutic approach is warm, collaborative and evidence-based. She predominantly utilises interventions based on cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), attachment-based intervention, brief psychotherapy, strength based approach, to support her patients to reach their individual goals.

Sabrina has appointments available on Friday mornings.

Please call 07 3394 9500 to book

The National Allergy Centre of Excellence (NACE) was launched last month. One of its roles is to coordinate research and assist those with allergies to participate in trials. For example, there is current enrolment for a peanut allergy treatment. This will determine whether the medication Ligelizumab can decrease sensitivity to peanuts in children/adolescents with severe peanut allergy when given monthly by injection for 1 year. To enrol visit https://www.nace.org.au/allergy-studies/

As well as our own peer support meeting this Saturday, eczema.support/13Aug22, we would also like to share with you an invitation to an online education session next Wednesday on "Psychological aspects of atopic eczema" held by our friends through the Department of Dermatology at Eastern Health. Please find attached an event flyer for your information. Registration is free and via the following link: https://easternhealtheczemaschool.eventbrite.com.au

Does your child attend before and after school care? Join our webinar with the National Allergy Strategy to learn how you can work with the before and after school service to have reasonable strategies in place to help keep your child safe and included.

Event details: Wed 17 AUGUST | 7:30pm AEST | 5:30pm AWST

The webinar will include a short presentation from Dr Preeti Joshi, a Paediatric Clinical Immunology/Allergy Specialist and Sally Voukelatos, a Health Educator from Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia. The presentation will be followed by a live question and answer session.

Register here: http://ow.ly/TyAa50JLcHQ

There is a difference between a food allergy and food intolerance. Intolerances do not involve the body’s immune system unlike food allergy and coeliac disease.

After eating, some people complain of symptoms like headaches, bloating or mouth ulcers, but these are not caused by allergies. Some of these symptoms can result from food intolerance. Food intolerance is slower in onset, are generally does not cause severe allergic reactions.

*** EDITED TO ADD: In very rare cases someone with a food intolerance can experience an anaphylaxis from their intolerance. Please also note that rarely someone will have anaphylaxis from a food additive.

Some people with food allergy are not at risk of anaphylaxis, however their condition can causes severe symptoms. These conditions include FPIES and EoE and must be treated seriously. ***

🧐 Important Fact: Lactose intolerance is not the same as milk allergy.

Learn more about food allergy and intolerance on our website:
http://ow.ly/EyFV50JJ8fi

If you are raising a little one with a cow’s milk allergy or breastfeeding a child with a cow’s milk allergy it can be challenging to make sure you are meeting calcium requirements.

Recommended daily intakes for calcium are:

- 1-3 years: 500mg

- 4-8 years: 700mg

- 9-11 years: 1000mg

- 12-18 years: 1300mg

- Breastfeeding mums: 1000mg

To help you or your child meet the daily intake target, try incorporating a variety of the following foods.

GOOD SOURCES

- Calcium fortified plant-based milk (1 cup = 250mg)

- Firm tofu, made with a calcium firming agent (100g = 320mg)

- Tinned salmon or sardines with bones (1 small tin = ~250mg depending on brand). John West Calcium-enriched tuna has 800-1000mg per tin, depending on the flavour!

LOWER SOURCES

- Chia seeds (2 tsp = 45mg)

- Tahini (1bsp = 65mg)

- Almonds (30g = 80mg) – for younger children use almond butter

- Dried figs (2 fruit = 80mg)

- Chickpeas (1 cup = 80mg)

It can be tricky to meet these daily targets. Make an appointment with our allergy Dietitian if you are struggling to reach their quota. We can give you tips to make it achievable depending on your child’s preferences.

Are they getting enough calcium and vitamins? Is their diet lacking major nutrients? Do they need probiotics, Vitamin D or a multivitamin?
These are common questions asked by our food allergy families.
Your Allergist may recommend you see a specialist Dietitian to help answer these questions.
Receiving personalised advice for your child helps take the stress out of grocery shopping, cooking and meal planning and importantly ensures food allergy kids don’t miss out on key nutrients for optimal growth.

Jillian Dimock is our specialist allergy and paediatric Dietitian and is available at our Compass clinics three days per week.
With a new clinic now open on a Friday, there is plenty of appointment availability – give our friendly team a call on 07 3394 9500 or book online at https://compass.clinic/book-online/

Not in Brisbane? Telehealth appointments are available.

eating

Can we be too sterile and does that contribute to allergy development? It seems so!
Infants whose pacifier was placed in antiseptic solution are more at risk for food allergy than if the pacifier was cleaned with water or placed in the parent's mouth (water is just fine!) lhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0091674921002219

Infant pacifier sanitization and risk of challenge-proven food allergy: A cohort study Environmental microbial exposure plays a role in immune system development and susceptibility to food allergy.We sought to investigate whether infant …

We highly recommend this newly released book by London-based Allergist Dr Sophie Farooque. She writes succinctly on the breadth of allergy issues, explaining complex concepts in an engaging clear way and detailing the latest research.

Understanding Allergy by Sophie Farooque The expert go-to guide to understanding allergies

Looking for ideas of how to introduce the common allergy causing foods into your baby's diet?

Download free food ideas and recipe booklets from the Nip Allergies in the Bub website: https://bit.ly/3GJyqzw

We are looking for a receptionist to join our team.
No experience necessary 😀

Receptionist Wanted! Come join our team!
No experience necessary.

Our busy clinics have an opportunity for an organised, enthusiastic & well-presented Medical Receptionist for 30-38 hours per week Monday to Friday. This is a casual position with the view to go permanent.

The successful applicant must:
- Be double vaccinated

- Have full availability Monday - Friday 7am-6pm including one evening per week until 8:30pm

- Be able to work across four locations in South East Queensland including very occasional travel to Toowoomba and the Sunshine Coast clinics

- Be well presented, mature and have a solid work ethic

- Have an eye for attention to detail

- Be able to work in a team environment and independently

If this sounds like you, then we would love to hear from you!



Please include your full availability Monday to Friday in your cover letter.

Wage dependent on level of experience.

Email [email protected] to apply or for further information

Flooding across Brisbane as well as the broader SEQ region is causing havoc with all our lives. Please be patient as we attempt to deliver care. At this stage, the majority of our reception and clinical team are cut off from the clinic. If you have an appointment, we will try to keep you informed as best we can. Stay safe out there

Does the food eaten during pregnancy change the risk of children's allergies?
We are often asked this and previously there has been little evidence. A new systematic review has highlighted a reduced risk of children developing allergies if the mother eats a high level of vegetables, plenty of fibre and yoghurt. Eating more potato, red meat and fruit juices increased allergy risk. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/all.14949

The maternal diet index in pregnancy is associated with offspring allergic diseases: the Healthy Start study The maternal diet in pregnancy appears to be associated with offspring allergy outcomes. A maternal allergy-preventive diet index in pregnancy was developed and validated. Vegetables and yogurt were ...