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Breathlessness is a common presenting symptom in primary care, and there are many causes.Early and accurate diagnosis is critical to ensuring patients receive the right treatment at the earliest opportunity.

The National Review of Asthma Deaths (NRAD) came out a decade ago, yet as a nation, we still have the highest asthma death rate in Europe - four times that of Italy or the Netherlands. This is unsurprising, considering many patients still rely on their blue inhalers alone.However:• Blue inhalers don’t treat inflammation• Brown inhalers don’t relieve symptoms quicklyFirst and foremost, the best inhaler is the inhaler the patient will use and identifying what this is should actively involve the patient.

On the 28th November the joint National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), British Thoracic Society (BTS) and Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) will publish their long-awaited single guideline on asthma diagnosis, monitoring and management.

This webinar featured short presentations and discussions from our amazing and vastly experienced panel: Carol Stonham, Kevin Gruffydd-Jones, Deborah Leese, Helena Cummings and Darush Attar-Zadeh, chaired by our Executive Vice-Chair Ren Lawlor.

This is a high-level summary of what the new BTS/NICE/SIGN Asthma: diagnosis monitoring and chronic asthma management guideline means for you as a primary healthcare professional and what steps you need to take to implement it effectively. 

Joining Ren Lawlor (PCRS Executive Vice-Chair and Advanced Nurse Practitioner) in this PCRS podcast episode is Dr Steve Holmes (GP and PCRS Committee Member).Data and reports prove that SABA overuse is an indicator of poorly controlled asthma - so what conversations do we need to have in order for that to change?Tune in to this podcast to hear how Ren and Steve break down those challenging conversations and provide you with the tips and advice required to ensure that your patients are being diagnosed and treated in the best ways possible. 

Aimed at primary care respiratory leaders, this blueprint document provides 10 tips for contacting your local MP about environmental issues. It offers a step by step guide on how to contact, engage and lobby your local MP on greener respiratory healthcare, as well as provides a template letter which can be used to make that initial contact. 

This webinar, chaired by Katherine Hickman (our PCRS Executive Chair), introduced the new PCRS/AZ COPD risk slider in November 2024 to mark World COPD Day. Katherine, along with guest speakers Darush Attar-Zadeh (Pharmacist) and Steve Holmes (GP) introduces the new COPD risk slider and provides a demonstration on how it can be used effectively within a consultation. The new COPD risk slider supports healthcare professionals and pharmacists to: