This pathway is based on the Living Well with COPD (RESPIPLUS™) educational program which has been developed and successfully used around the world for over 20 years. Living Well with COPD has allowed Healthcare professionals to guide many individuals with COPD towards a more positive lifestyle and experience many meaningful improvements. These include a better quality of life and an improved ability to self-manage their condition with less visits to the emergency room and hospital admissions.

What Is COPD?

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a disease that can affect every part of your life. COPD is an umbrella term for several conditions, including emphysema and chronic bronchitis. It is characterized by airflow limitation that is due to airways and/or abnormalities in the tiny air sacs making breathing difficult.

What is the impact of COPD?

As the disease progresses, the impact can become considerable on your daily activities. Simple tasks that you would normally do with no hesitation may become difficult or nearly impossible without assistance. Many people also experience the impact of the considerable financial, emotional, and social strain caused by COPD.

You are likely to experience flare-ups of the disease (worsening of symptoms). A flare-up can last anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. These flare-ups, also known as exacerbations, are the main cause of hospitalization in people with COPD and can significantly affect the quality of your life.

Fortunately, there are things you can do to overcome and prevent these limitations and improve your well-being. This is why we have created COPD Care: A pathway to Live Life Well, by RESPIPLUS^TM.

How this pathway can help you

Being able to work with your respiratory educator on a regular basis will give you the opportunity to identify your goals in order to feel in better control of your health, as well as express any concerns and work on areas you may be struggling with. Your educator will adapt and tailor the education sessions and follow-up to your specific needs.

The progam

Learning content

The education modules covered with your educator will help you integrate new skills to manage your disease and adopt healthy new lifestyle behaviours. More specifically, you will learn more about:

What causes COPD and how it affects your lungs
Strategies to prevent symptoms aggravations (flare-ups)
Why you have been prescribed respiratory medications and how to use your inhalers properly
Different breathing techniques to control your respiratory symptoms
How to self-manage your stress and anxiety
The importance of an action plan to identify and manage a flare up, and how to use it properly
Healthy behaviours including leading an active lifestyle and living in a smoke-free environment
Special requirements, such as using oxygen on a long-term basis (if applicable to you)

Evaluations

It is always important to undergo a thorough evaluation with your educator, so they have all the information regarding your medical history and current situation. This is how they are able to select the most appropriate modules/topics for you and provide you with additional preparation and post-session homework at each visit to help enhance your insights and integration of the subjects discussed.

Education sessions

In the beginning, education sessions are scheduled with your educator every 2 weeks, in order to cover the basics of the program and allow you to integrate these new behaviours into your day-to-day life. These sessions aim to help you develop the understanding and self-management tools you need to live a healthy and fulfilling life with COPD.

In addition to meeting with your educator, it is important to meet with your physician as well, to make sure you have access to the best pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment for you, as per current guidelines.

Maintenance phase

Eventually, once these learnings become part of your new lifestyle, you will move to a “Maintenance phase” where you will still receive a regular follow-up with your educator every 6 months, unless otherwise determined by them. This will allow you to review some techniques or information that perhaps you have forgotten or are not completely comfortable with. For example, it is always important to review inhaler techniques to ensure you are receiving the full benefits of your prescribed medication.

Follow-ups with your educator also allow you to explore new educational material should your medical (or even environmental) situation change overtime, requiring additional treatment, therapy or lifestyle adaptations.

Respiratory status follow-up

Recognizing a worsening of symptoms (flare-up) early on and taking the necessary steps to manage it is one of the top priorities in COPD. For this reason, we have included a “Respiratory Status Follow-Up” pathway to allow you to self monitor your symptoms on a regular basis.

You will be asked questions about common COPD symptoms and your general wellbeing. If a potential exacerbation is detected, the pathway will alert your educator of the situation and they will then contact you quickly to help you determine the next steps of action and prevent further deterioration.

With the tools and resources at your disposal, combining technology with the highest standards of education, the power to self-manage a chronic disease successfully is now in your hands.