BLF - National Strategy for COPD
COPD has been off the political radar for too long but 2008 has bought a number of exciting developments in the world of respiratory care.
For a disease that researchers estimate as many as 4 million people in the UK may have, COPD has not been given the attention it deserves in both the clinical and political arenas.
Firstly, the work on the National Service Framework, now to be called the National Strategy for COPD, launched in Spring 2009 should lead to a fantastic step forward in the way in which people with COPD will be cared for and lead to improved services in England.
The BLF has been working with patients to make sure their views are incorporated in this new strategy and that this will lead to improved access to services like pulmonary rehabilitation. Patients need to be able to access the main planks of treatment for COPD more easily and have a better understanding and control of their own care. Recommendations from the External Reference Group (ERG), which was established to provide advice to Ministers on the strategy content and in particular how the needs of COPD patients can be met. In addition to improving support and clinical care to patients, the government is also considering ways of ensuring that the early diagnosis of COPD can take place more systematically.
Early diagnosis is vital. If patients can be identified at the mild stage of the disease and smoking cessation is offered and accepted, the progression of the disease can be halted. The BLF is seeking the missing millions of people who have COPD yet don’t know it. Often symptoms of breathlessness are dismissed as a product of old age and people can have the condition for years without knowing, often leading to late diagnosis and a poor outlook.
COPD causes long term distress to the individual often making every day tasks very difficult and time-consuming. Exacerbations of COPD often lead to emergency hospital admissions. To achieve more effective management of the condition, the BLF has introduced two new initiatives to help people manage their condition and hopefully reduce the number of emergency hospital admissions.
The COPD self-management plan, produced with the input of healthcare professionals and patients, is now available for sale through the BLF (see www.lunguk.org). This plan has now been purchased by PCTs for use in the treatment of COPD. Self-management for people with COPD is the subject of many debates. What exactly does the phrase mean and how can we move towards effective self-management? Self-management seems to be interpreted in many different ways. The BLF is interested in the empowerment of patients. At present many patients manage their medication with help and discussion with their respiratory nurse or GP. In other surgeries this is not allowed. Whilst having some benefits it can lead to a delay in treatment and a higher level of exacerbation than needs to be the case. The BLF self- management plan is designed to ensure that healthcare professionals and patients work to a joint plan of managing COPD. The plan aims to ensure patients have better knowledge of their disease – often a huge problem as many patients have told us – and can react in the best way if things progress.
The BLF has also produced an exercise diary which has been used over the past 3 years by physiotherapists providing pulmonary rehabilitation. This diary is now for sale through the BLF so that it can be used more widely to assist patients taking forward what they have learned at pulmonary rehabilitation. For many patients one of their most loudly expressed regrets is that they did not understand when they were diagnosed that keeping active and exercising as much as they can is the most important way for them to keep going. They usually think the opposite i.e. that they will be less breathless if they sit still. Understanding this very important fact is vital for patients to self manage. With the production of these two products the BLF is starting on a new course that should benefit both health care professionals and patients.
Action Mesothelioma Day is on 27th February 2009. Mesothelioma is a lung cancer which is caused by exposure to asbestos and currently kills one person every five hours in the UK. The British Lung Foundation is campaigning for better care and support for those affected by the disease, for employees to be better protected from asbestos exposure, and for more funding for research into the condition. For more information about the campaign please visit: www.lunguk.org or call 08458 50 50 20