Southampton professor champions report to improve asthma and COPD care in hospitals
New recommendations from a national audit could lead to better care for people with respiratory conditions.
The National Respiratory Audit Programme (NRAP) has published its Organisational Audit Report 2024.
The audit was led by Southampton’s Professor Tom Wilkinson, NRAP senior clinical lead. He leads the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre’s respiratory and allergy theme.
Five recommendations
The report used data from 2022 to 2024. It assessed the resourcing and organisation of asthma and COPD care in hospitals, and pulmonary rehabilitation services across England and Wales.
Based on this data, the report highlights five key areas of improvement:
- Implementation of workforce ratios
- Seven-day access to respiratory specialist advice and respiratory nurse specialists
- Supporting for young people with asthma to transition into adult care
- Tobacco dependence treatment and support
- Widening access to pulmonary rehabilitation
‘Driving real impact’
Prof Wilkinson is a Professor of Respiratory Medicine and Associate Dean for Enterprise at the University of Southampton, and Honorary Consultant at University Hospital Southampton.
He is an NIHR Senior Investigator, recognising his status as one of the most prominent health researchers in the UK.
Prof Wilkinson said: “Respiratory conditions affect the lives of millions of people in the UK. Asthma and COPD are key drivers of chronic symptoms, impaired quality of life and acute illness, causing hospital admissions through infection and exacerbations.
“In this report, we provide unique insights into how respiratory services are organised, and identify variations in both team structure and resourcing. It carries five recommendations focusing on key areas, which if improved will drive real impact and improve outcomes.”
To read the report and find out more, please visit the Organisational Audit Report 2024 webpage.