Breath of fresh air

Abstract

conceptions that respiratory units are full of people coughing, hacking and filling sputum cups, nothing could be further from the reality. It is true that some patients need to use sputum cups, but that is only a small part of respiratory care. The respiratory unit at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford is a high-dependency unit which accepts patients directly from the hospital’s intensive care unit and from its wards. Consequently, patients present with a wide variety of conditions, many of which need constant and skilled nursing care. Non-invasive ventilation, tracheostomy care, oxygen therapy and airway humidification are some of the intensive interventions managed by specialist respiratory nurses. Respiratory diseases account for more than 30 per cent of all UK hospital admissions. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and related illnesses account for around 27,000 UK deaths each year. Incidence is highest in countries where smoking has been, or still is, common.