Lung conditions are the third biggest killer in the UK, yet The BMJ finds a postcode lottery for access to crucial diagnostic services that most impacts the areas with the highest burden. Sally Howard reports
The BMJ has found that patients in some of the most deprived areas of the UK, where respiratory conditions including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma are twice as prevalent,1 have limited or no access to crucial respiratory diagnostics.
GPs in some of the worst affected areas say the fact they have no means of referring patients for tests, including spirometry and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) analysis, is “troubling” and “a silent scandal” despite NHS England trumpeting its rollout of “one stop shop” community diagnostic centres (CDCs),2 some of which will be run by private providers.3
London GP (and BMJ columnist) Rammya Mathew says COPD is a “known disease of deprivation and a key focus of Core20PLUS5” the NHS England initiativ
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DR ELLIE: The focus on the negative experiences is leading to a widespread misconception that the menopause is always hellish and something to be feared, when in most cases it is not.