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WATCH OUR WEBINAR – Breathe California’s 2020 World COPD Day Event was recorded on November 19, 2020. It features Keynote speaker Antonello Punturieri, M.D., Ph.D., Program Director, COPD/Environment Program at National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s Division of Lung Disease; Yoga breathing exercises; and an Occupational Therapy discussion. This informative webinar is especially useful for those who have COPD, their families and caregivers. Watch Now.

Program Order

  • Welcome and Introduction
  • Keynote Speaker: Dr. Antonello (Tony) Punurieri, Ph.D., M.D., Program Director, COPD/Environment Program at National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s Division of Lung Disease
  • Yoga Breathing Exercises with Ashwini Surpur, MA
  • Speaker: Jerilyn (Gigi) Smith, PhD, OTR/L, SWC, FAOTA, Occupational Therapy Department Chair and the Vice President of the Occupational Therapy Association of California (OTAC)
  • Bingo and Prizes
  • “Ask the Doctor” with Dr. Sulochina Lulla, MD, MPH

See information about our speakers at the bottom of the page.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis, is a serious lung disease that makes it hard to breathe. More than 16 million Americans have been diagnosed with this debilitating lung disease, and it’s estimated that millions more have it and don’t know.

The first World COPD Day was held in 2002. Each year organizers in more than 50 countries have carried out activities, making the day one of the world’s most important COPD awareness and education events.

The 2020 theme for World COPD Day is “Living Well with COPD – Everybody, Everywhere”. This year’s aim is to send a positive message to both patients and providers that although COPD does not have a cure, there are many ways to actively live well. 

World COPD Day Event Speakers

Antonello (Tony) Punturieri, Ph.D., M.D.

Dr. Punturieri is a Program Officer in the Division of Lung Diseases (DLD), NHLBI, NIH. In this capacity, Dr. Punturieri administers a varied portfolio of grants and contracts in the area of COPD and environment. Specifically, Dr. Punturieri participates in the development and administration of programs that aim at the understanding of COPD disease mechanisms, COPD prevention, and the testing and evaluation of COPD therapies. Dr. Punturieri obtained a M.D. from the Medical School at University of Ferrara (Italy) and a Ph.D. in Immunology from La Sapienza University in Rome, Italy. He spent four years at NIH as Visiting Fellow at NIDDK and Visiting Associate at NIAID. He returned to Rome as Assistant Professor of Pathophysiology at La Sapienza University in Rome (Italy) while also working as Staff Scientist at Regina Elena Cancer Institute. He then moved to the Division of Hematology/Oncology at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, and subsequently joined the Pulmonary Division at Michigan and the Veterans Administration Hospital (Pulmonary Section) in Ann Arbor. He joined NHLBI in 2006.

Ashwini Surpur, MA     

Ashwini Surpur, BS (Computer Science), MA (Sanskrit), ERYT, CIAYT is the Executive Director of Yoga Bharati. She has worked at Oracle as a Software Engineer for 15 years and quit her job in 2010 to join Yoga Bharati as a full time volunteer staff. She has spoken at various conferences on yoga and Hindu philosophy. She writes articles for various magazines and news media on Yoga. She is passionate about literature and philosophy and composes poems in Kannada and English. She is pursuing higher studies in Veerashaiva philosophy and writes articles on Veerashaivism. She teaches Bhagavad Gita for children and adults.

Jerilyn (Gigi) Smith, PhD, OTR/L, SWC, FAOTA 

Occupational Therapy Department Chair and the Vice President of the Occupational Therapy Association of California (OTAC), Dr. Gigi Smith, was awarded t Dr. Smith completed her PhD at Trident University.  Her research was in the area of autism, sensory processing and feeding and eating behaviors.  Dr. Smith has authored and co-authored chapters in Pedretti’s Occupational Therapy: Practice Skills he 2020 OTAC Outstanding Service Award in October, 2020. for Physical Dysfunction and Cara & Macrae’s Psychosocial Occupational Therapy: A Clinical Practice. She has presented locally, nationally, and internationally on dysphagia and the role of occupational therapy in treating swallowing disorders, was a member of the Commission on Practice for the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), and serves the department as the Graduate Coordinator/Advisor and is the Student OT Association (SOTA) Advisor. She has a clear commitment to SJSU serving on multiple department, college, and university committees and most recently elected to the Academic Senate representing the College of Health and Human Sciences (CHHS).

Sulochina Lulla, MD, MPH

Dr. Lulla is Board-certified in pulmonology; asthma, allergy, and immunology; and pediatrics.  She has an MPH degree in addition to her MD, and she recently retired from Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara after forty years of service.  She is Secretary of the Breathe California Board of Directors, serves as medical director of the agency, and has conducted numerous trainings for patients, caregivers, parents, school nurses, and health clerks.  Dr. Lulla received her medical training at College of Physicians and Surgeons, Bombay, India and completed a residency at the Department of Pediatrics, Cook County Hospital, Chicago.  She has received numerous awards in recognition of her community service and has served on visiting medical teams in Ghana, Nicaragua, and India.