A series of fortunate events – what would it take to improve lung health outcomes a decade from now?

27 November 2024

This year’s British Thoracic Society Winter Meeting Grand Challenge Lecture was delivered by Sarah Woolnough, Chief Executive of The King’s Fund. Sarah delivered a fascinating and thought-provoking talk focused on the major shifts in the way care is funded and delivered, which will be required to transform respiratory care in the UK.

While acknowledging the challenges faced both by respiratory patients and the healthcare workforce, the lecture painted a potentially bright future for respiratory health, provided all opportunities to create meaningful change over the next decade are embraced.

At the heart of this transformation is prevention, with stronger action on clean air, smoking cessation, and tackling cold, damp housing to reduce the burden of respiratory disease on the NHS and protect future generations.

Equally important at a system level is the need to improve access to care through investment in diagnostics. Services should focus on high quality data, research and innovation and adopt digital tools to deliver timely, patient-centred care.

Ms Woolnough also argued that for changes to happen, action to address socioeconomic inequalities is critical. Deprivation significantly worsens respiratory outcomes, with those in the most deprived areas over four times more likely to die from COPD. Prioritising these measures will ensure advances in care can benefit all communities.

Paul Walker, Chair of BTS, says: “The last few years have been extremely challenging for healthcare staff but we can now see the light heralding improvement rather than simply survival. Sarah delivers an uplifting commentary about what we can achieve and deliver over the next decade notwithstanding the current challenges. Her particular focus on healthcare inequality and why and how to address this is of the greatest importance to individuals, communities and for social cohesion.”

The future of lung health is bright if Government, system leaders and stakeholders work together and remain focused on reform. The British Thoracic Society (BTS) is dedicated to making this vision a reality, continuing to champion the role of the healthcare workforce and engaging with partners to ensure every step brings us closer to better lung health for all.

Learn more about the work of BTS

Read the BTS report – A Respiratory Workforce for the Future