The Primary Care Respiratory Society UK (PCRS) is increasingly alarmed by the widespread and accelerating loss of respiratory leadership, expertise and strategic capacity across Integrated Care Boards (ICBs), regional NHS structures, and Primary Care Networks (PCNs). This erosion is occurring at the very time when national policy places unprecedented expectations on primary care and systems to transform and deliver high-quality respiratory care closer to home.

With the new maintenance and reliever therapy (MART) license for children, this simple guide provides information and guidance on introducing children of 5-11 years of age safely and effectively to a MART regimen. It covers:

The PCRS blueprint for Neighbourhood Health in COPD outlines how Neighbourhood Health models could organise COPD care around integrated local services. It proposes clear points of contact, population health management, coordinated, collaborative and personalised care planning and access to diagnostics, community respiratory teams and multidisciplinary support. It advocates for holistic, patient-centred care, as well as appropriate funding, diagnostic capacity and strong collaboration between health, social care and community partners.

The Asthma Slide Rule supports implementation of the 2024 BTS/NICE/SIGN asthma guideline, greener respiratory healthcare and is a gateway to establishing short-acting beta2-agonist (SABA) free treatment pathways. It should be used:

The Primary Care Respiratory Society (PCRS) recognises that short-term respiratory admissions can be reduced but not always entirely avoided. These admissions occur when patients require hospital-based stabilisation, diagnosis or treatment which is not otherwise available to them in primary care. In line with the 10-Year health plan for England: Fit for the future, PCRS supports patient care in the community and care delivered closer to home.

Spacer devices are an important tool in the treatment of asthma and COPD. They are not just accessories they meaningfully improve how much medication reaches the lungs, reduce side effects, make inhalers easier to use correctly and can improve the efficacy of treatment; they can also be especially helpful during exacerbations.Join Dr Katherine Hickman, Deb Leese and Viv Marsh as they launch and run you through the new UKIG Consensus Guide. You can find the guide in the resource section below.

This document offers practical guidance on delivering evidence-based asthma care, particularly when it takes place in unplanned care settings.It focuses on the management of asthma in adults and young people aged 12 and over. It is essential that any clinician providing asthma care is aware of recent changes to national guidance, and feels supported and able to implement them. The changes are outlined in this document. 

Since the publication of the Darzi Report and the new NHS 10-year Health Plan: Fit for the Future, there has been an increased focus on the delivery of Neighbourhood Health to reinforce integrated care and facilitate joined-up working between primary, secondary, community and social care.In anticipation of this new healthcare landscape, PCRS is working to place respiratory care, specifically chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), at the forefront of Neighbourhood Health delivery and use it:

My name is Russell Winwood; I’m 59 years old and have been living with severe COPD for the past 14 years. Nowadays I live very well with my COPD, but it hasn’t always been like this. My journey to this point has had its ups and downs; however, I have learnt that every step has been an opportunity to learn more about my disease. My breathless journey started when I was diagnosed with asthma at the age of 10. So, it’s fair to say I have had a lifetime of experience of not being able to breathe like most people do