Respiratory care action plan draft: consultation report

Annex A Summary of commitments

Commitment 1

We will support respiratory health training and education for healthcare professionals by working with NHS Education Scotland and other partners to ensure that education and training on respiratory conditions is delivered/is available to healthcare professionals.  We will support education to be available in a variety of formats to optimise accessibility.

Commitment 2

We will improve equitable access to evidence based diagnostic tests by working with partners to reduce variation in the quality of spirometry testing across the Country and design pathways for complex respiratory function testing.

Commitment 3

We will support consistent disease specific pathways and work with the sector to ensure they are embedded in the health services and partners.

Commitment 4

We will support NHS Boards to increase access to pulmonary rehabilitation. We will design pulmonary rehabilitation pathways based on examples of best practice and test them in areas where improvement is required. We will look at ways of providing support to a wider group of people with rehabilitation and self-management support.

Commitment 5

We will work with NHS Boards, clinicians and third sector to promote good practice and reduce variation in the quality of mental health support access across the country.

Commitment 6

We will work with key partners to develop policies and procedures for a good transition from children and young people services to adult services for asthma.

Commitment 7

We will work with NHS Boards, clinicians and the third sector to reduce inconsistencies in the provision of best practice palliative care for people with a lung condition as they near the end of life.  

Commitment 8

We will provide tools, and information for people with lung conditions to support effective self-management practices by:

• working with NHS Inform, and stakeholders across the Respiratory Community to improve the range of information available on respiratory conditions;
• supporting further development of A Local Information System for Scotland (ALISS) as a national resource for sign-posting people with respiratory conditions to care and support;
• supporting health literacy to ensure that people have the knowledge, skills, understanding and confidence to use health information, to be active partners in their care, and to navigate health and social care systems;
• working with partners to increase access to community-based support for an effective self-management that complements clinical management and care.

Commitment 9

Support innovative technologies to enable people to be actively involved in their respiratory health.

Commitment 10

Support unpaid carers accessing appropriate information and support their health and wellbeing.

Commitment 11

We will work with the Scottish Atlas of Variation Group to explore developing an Atlas on respiratory conditions.

Commitment 12

We will work with NHS Information Services Division and others to: 

• understand the gaps in prevalence, and how best to improve the data; 
• enhance capture of already routine collected data;
• further develop systems and processes that support service Planning and workforce development based on this information;
• explore the feasibility of developing a national reporting framework that includes key performance indicators for respiratory care and support and measures improvements in care and support. 

Commitment 13

We will support a programme of innovation and the development of a phased approach to implementation where emerging evidence supports changing models of workforce, such as testing new roles of Advanced Practice for nurses.

Commitment 14

We will work with stakeholders, in the context of the work taking place under the National Health and Social Care Workforce Plan, to explore how best to further support the development of appropriate expertise in the health and social care and support workforce for those working with people with respiratory conditions.

Commitment 15

We will discuss a national or regional approach to workforce planning with stakeholders, to test the extension of existing workforce planning tools and their application to the wider respiratory workforce in Integration Authorities and NHS Boards.