COPD | Cherryvalley Group Practice | Belfast, Northern Ireland

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

What is COPD?

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the name for a collection of lung diseases including chronic bronchitis, emphysema and chronic obstructive airways disease. The main symptom of COPD is an inability to breathe in and out properly. This is also referred to as airflow obstruction.

Currently we are calling our patients for telephone review appointment with our Specialist Nurse. It is helpful for us to gather information about how well controlled your COPD is in advance of the appointment. We will send a questionnaire via text message (accuRx) and would be grateful if you could take the time to complete. If you do not have a smart phone, you can complete the questionnaire below.

If your symptoms are deteriorating or you are concerned about your breathing please contact the Surgery by phone for further advice.

Inhaler technique

Inhaler technique is very important to ensure your COPD treatment is optimised.

There are many different devices used in COPD. Our COPD Nurse can check your inhaler technique during your appointment. Please follow the link to find training videos for your inhaler

Smoking and COPD

One of the best things you can do to help your COPD is to give up smoking. This will also reduce your risk of heart disease and certain cancers such as lung and throat cancer,

Follow this link to find out more about local Stop Smoking services or speak to your Pharmacist or COPD Nurse.

COPD Questionnaire

If you have been given an appointment to attend a COPD Clinic, we will send you a questionnaire to complete in advance of the appointment via text message. If you do not have a smart phone, as an alternative you can complete this questionnaire.

This information will help us assess how well controlled your COPD is.

Please only complete this form when asked to do so by the practice.

Pulmonary Rehabilitation

Pulmonary Rehabilitation is a programme delivered by Physiotherapists, Nurses and Occupational Therapists. It is made up of a tailored exercise programme alongside delivery of information and advice on managing your symptoms.

There is good evidence that Pulmonary Rehabilitation improves breathlessness and improves exercise tolerance in patients with COPD.

There are online resources and programmes which can be found here which can enable you to carry out Pulmonary Rehabilitation at home, or you can discuss further with our COPD Nurse Specialist.