A more ‘radical approach’ to scaling up integrated care, and lung MOTs for targeted early diagnosis, were among the calls made by speakers at the British Thoracic Society’s (BTS) annual winter conference, held in London on 5-7 December.
Lung health MOTs for high-risk groups needs to be rolled out nationwide, said BTS chair, Lisa Davies.
‘In this country we often diagnose lung disease too late when treatment is less likely to be effective. Spirometry, delivered by trained healthcare staff is a critical tool in a wider national push to achieve early and accurate diagnosis of lung disease,’ said Dr Davis.
Representatives from the Taskforce for Lung Health added that the ‘inexpensive spirometry breath test’, which is used by respiratory physios, should be more widely available to improve diagnosis of lung disease.
Proactively targeting high-risk groups also provided opportunities to promote advice and support on keeping lung health long term, according to a ‘case finding’ pilot run in carparks by Macmillan and Manchester Clinical Commissioning Groups.
Conference speakers also highlighted that nearly nine in 10 health professionals and commissioners believe more integrated working between acute, primary and social care was the most important factor in improving health outcomes for people with respiratory disease.
But a more radical strategy is needed to overcome funding and training barriers, according to the findings of a survey of 122 NHS participants by sector platform Respiratory Futures
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