In the upcoming year, NCL Pulmonary Rehabilitation (PR) services have planned projects aimed at enhancing the quality of PR services for eligible respiratory patients across north central London. One of the key objectives is to improve the quality of referrals into the services.

Criteria for referring into pulmonary rehabilitation

• Confirmation of diagnosis: Referrals require quality assured spirometry or a high-resolution CT scan, or a clinic summary from a chest clinic to ensure optimal management and effective, safe treatment. It is important to note that these documents do not need to be within a specified time frame.
• Challenges: 60% of PR referrals per month are received without a conclusive diagnosis. Clinicians often spend a considerable amount to time to identify documents and missing details that confirm a respiratory diagnosis. The process is time-consuming and labour-intensive, especially given the volume of referrals the services receive.
• Reasons for rejection: Patients are referred with significant health issues that exclude them from participating in classes. When making referrals, consult the relevant PR service page for the inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Request to primary care colleagues

The NCL Pulmonary Rehabilitation services collectively request all primary care colleagues to provide evidence as outlined in the confirmation of diagnosis, to confirm the diagnosis of long-term respiratory conditions at the time of referral. This will help improve the quality of care and the experience for patients.

Next step

The aim to work collaboratively and develop resources that will assist primary care colleagues in making quality referrals.