Sue Ryder breathlessness service expands into Gloucester to improve access to specialist care

A specialist breathlessness support service developed by Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice is now reaching patients in Gloucester through a new partnership with local primary care teams – bringing tailored support to people who may otherwise face barriers to accessing care.

The service, which includes one-to-one physiotherapy, outpatient support and a six-week rehabilitation group called Take a Breath, was created at the Sue Ryder hospice to meet growing demand after the pandemic. It offers practical strategies to help people manage breathlessness across a range of conditions, including COPD, asthma and bronchiectasis.

The Take a Breath group includes circuit-based rehabilitation exercises, which have helped people move more easily and feel better day to day.

To make the service easier to reach, the hospice team partnered with Gloucester Inner City Primary Care Network (PCN). Talking about the partnership, Sarah Sharp, Physiotherapist at Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice, said: “We’ve built this partnership from the ground up, starting with one clinic at Gloucester Health Access Centre and now reaching patients across the whole inner-city PCN. It’s been a collaborative effort, and the response has been incredible.

“Many of our patients are referred directly to us and we’re often their first point of contact at the hospice. The Take a Breath group – especially the rehabilitation exercises – has made a real difference to people’s mobility and quality of life. It’s exciting to see the service grow, and to know we’re helping people access specialist support in a way that works for them.”

Sonia Silk is the Primary Care Network Respiratory Specialist Nurse Lead at Gloucester Health Access Centre, which supports patients who may face more challenges getting the care they need.

Sonia spoke about the partnership: “We have patients who, due to limited mobility or anxiety, can’t travel to unfamiliar locations. They needed support in a place they already knew, and that’s what this clinic provides.”

The community respiratory clinic now runs fortnightly across all practices in the inner-city Primary Care Network. Demand has been high from the outset.

“The response has been completely positive,” Sonia added. “Patients are using fewer rescue medications and feeling more confident in managing their breathlessness. That’s a direct result of working with Sarah at the team at Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice.

Later this month, the team will pilot the Take a Breath course at a community centre in Gloucester.

“We want our patients to have the same access to specialist services as the general population,” Sonia said. “It’s about making sure they get the right support, just as patients with other conditions do.

“Hospice care in the community supports primary care teams as well as patients,” Sonia added. “It’s a truly personalised approach that helps people take control and make decisions that suit them. And it’s wonderful that we can work so easily together towards the same goal: offering the best care we can.”

For more information about Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice, visit www.sueryder.org/leckhampton

———————–

 About Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice:  

At Sue Ryder, we can’t make life’s most difficult moments easy, but we can carry some of the load. For more than 70 years we have been a source of strength and support for anyone living with a life-limiting illness or grief.

Dying and grief are universal experiences, but too many people face them alone. Here at Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice located just outside Cheltenham we provide a safe and reassuring hand for right across Gloucestershire to reach for.

From giving care and support for someone at the end of their life to helping someone manage their grief, we know there is no one size fits all when it comes to how we cope and the help we need. We campaign for everyone who is approaching the end of their life or grieving to have access to the right support, at the right time. And we seek to break down the barriers to talking about dying and grief – so we can all be better prepared and better equipped to be there for each other.