Suffolk and North East Essex Pulmonary Rehabilitation Service
Welcome to the Suffolk and North East Essex Pulmonary Rehabilitation conversation.
Pulmonary Rehabilitation is a programme of exercise and education prescribed to people with long-term lung conditions.
This is a place where you can join in the conversation about the future of Pulmonary Rehabilitation services where you live. Share your experiences, thoughts and ideas and be part of the solution.
Let's Talk Pulmonary Rehabilitation.
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The NHS Long Term Plan identified respiratory disease as a national clinical priority, with specific commitments on early and accurate diagnosis, medicines optimisation, pulmonary and combined rehabilitation, community acquired pneumonia and supported self-management options for respiratory patients.
Pulmonary rehabilitation is a multidisciplinary exercise and education programme designed for people with lung disease who are limited by breathlessness. Eligible patients are offered twice a week face-to-face/virtual exercise class for up to 6-8 weeks. Pulmonary Rehabilitation results in improved exercise capacity or increased quality of life in 90% patients who complete a programme. Optimal treatment and management of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and breathlessness can reduce acute admissions, reduce exacerbations, and increase capacity in primary care. Pulmonary Rehabilitation should be seen as equal importance to pharmacological interventions in the treatment of lung disease.
It is recognised that there are several barriers in accessing quality assured Pulmonary Rehabilitation services including: patient activation levels, location and timing of services, group formats, ability to access face-to-face sessions confidently and low awareness of Pulmonary rehabilitation and referral routes with healthcare professionals.
NHS England have drafted a 5-year vision for Pulmonary Rehabilitation services. The purpose of the plan is to set the national direction for pulmonary rehabilitation transformation in England. The plan will focus on workforce, inequalities, service delivery, data/modelling, and quality of pulmonary rehabilitation services. A copy of the draft plan has been uploaded to this page.
Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board have outlined key priorities for the 5-year Pulmonary Rehabilitation strategy plan with the first year focusing on recovery and access to pulmonary rehabilitation across Suffolk and North East Essex. The pulmonary rehabilitation services are working towards accreditation to deliver quality assured exercise classes as recommended by NHS England. From year 2 we plan to focus on health inequalities and work with voluntary, community services and health coaches to increase access to pulmonary rehabilitation and completion rates. (NHSE draft plan attached)
We have recently launched pulmonary rehabilitation self-referral platform to enable patients with respiratory conditions limited by breathlessness to self-refer into a pulmonary rehabilitation exercise programme.
Useful links:
Physio - Self Referral (physioselfrefer.co.uk)
Respiratory services - NHS Suffolk and North East Essex ICB
Where is the service provided? - East Suffolk & North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (esneft.nhs.uk)
