People living with respiratory disease require a significant amount of support, guidance and intervention to manage their condition effectively. These interventions should be delivered by clinicians with an appropriate level of expertise in this field.

Health Education England elearning for healthcare, in partnership with NHS England and NHS Improvement, Accelerated Access Collaborative, WAHSN, AHSN Network, and the Office for Life Sciences, developed two elearning modules focused on FeNO in Asthma.

The Fit to Care document was initially developed to guide and support clinicians working with patients with respiratory disease. Since it’s first publication primary care has seen huge changes in the dynamics of the workforce providing this care.

There are no mandatory training requirements for healthcare professionals delivering respiratory care and the quality of care and patient pathways are variable throughout the country depending on the knowledge, skills, competence and confidence of those delivering care.

The PCRS Fit to Care document enables healthcare professionals of all disciplines to assess their competencies and any training needs they have to ensure they are  delivering safe and effective respiratory care. 

PCRS has developed a series a checklists for self-reflection, help prepare for revalidation and identify training needs. ✔ 

PCRS is delighted to endorse the Association of Respiratory Technology and Physiology (ARTP) spirometry course as appropriate for health professionals, having reviewed it and provided extensive input.

A range of interactive self-study courses are available via the Primary Care Respiratory Academy, covering subjects as diverse as diagnosing childhood wheeze, pulmonary rehabilitation and interpreting spirometry results.

People living with respiratory disease require a significant amount of support, guidance and intervention to manage their condition effectively. These interventions need to be delivered by clinicians with an appropriate level of expertise in this field.

Reflective practice is an important component of continuing professional development and the governing bodies of most professional groups require their members to submit detailed records as part of the revalidation/accreditation process.

This article from the Spring 2016 issue of Primary Care Respiratory Update discusses the PCRS campaign to raise awareness of the importance of continuing education and training in supporting primary healthcare professionals to deliver high value, patient-centred respiratory care.

This document has been superseded by the PCRS Fit to Care Framework wich provides concise information based on three different professional levels of standard, advanced and expert irrespective of professional role.

This is a new opportunity for 2016-17 and is now open for applications.