The importance of movement for people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Service user perspectives on engagement in an occupational therapy-led pulmonary rehabilitation programme: A qualitative interview study

Introduction

Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is an intervention for people with chronic respiratory conditions. There are questions about which components are important to its success, including the nature of occupational therapy involvement. The aim of this research was to explore the experiences of people who had attended an occupational therapy-led PR programme in the United Kingdom to determine the most important components.

Method

Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with service users who had experience of a community-based PR programme. Interviews were transcribed verbatim. Data were analysed using the framework analysis method with three researchers contributing to the analysis.

Findings

Nine people took part in the interviews, with a mean age of 72 years. Four themes were identified which were organised around the concepts of Doing, Being, Becoming Belonging. These were ‘Doing exercise and physical activity’, ‘being breathless’, ‘belonging as an individual within the group’ and ‘becoming a person who lives with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease’.

Conclusion

Doing physical activity, whilst coping with being breathless and belonging as an individual within a group can positively influence experiences and perceived outcomes during and after PR. These dimensions have the potential to shape occupation-focussed PR programmes and the occupational therapy contribution in this area of practice.

Palliative Rehabilitation Improves Health Care Utilization and Function in Frail Older Adults with Chronic Lung Diseases

OBJECTIVES

The Integrated Care for Advanced REspiratory Disorders (ICARE) service is a stay-in, post-acute care program for hospitalized patients with chronic, nonmalignant lung diseases. It provides palliative rehabilitation-a novel model integrating functional rehabilitation with early palliative care. We compare reduction of health care utilization among ICARE participants vs matched controls receiving usual care.

DESIGN

This is a prospective, propensity score-matched study. Primary outcomes were reduction in hospital readmissions and length of stay and emergency department (ED) visits, comparing the period 6 months before and after ICARE, or 6 months before and after hospital discharge (for controls). Secondary outcomes included 6-minute walking distance (6MWD) and Modified Barthel Index (MBI).

SETTING

Participants were matched 1:1 to controls by age, respiratory diagnosis, socioeconomic strata, index hospitalization length of stay, frailty, and recent admissions into intensive care unit or noninvasive ventilation units.

METHODS

Multidisciplinary interventions focused on symptom relief, functional rehabilitation, targeted comorbidity management, and postdischarge care coordination.

RESULTS

One hundred pairs of patients were matched. Participants were older adults (mean age 73.9 ± 8.2 years) with prolonged index hospitalization (median 12.0 days; interquartile range 7-18). Overall, 57% had high Hospital Frailty Risk Scores and 71% had overlapping respiratory diagnoses, the most common commonest being COPD (89%), followed by interstitial lung disease (54%) and bronchiectasis (28%). Small reductions in health care utilization were observed among controls. ICARE was associated with a further 9.1 ± 19.9 days' reduction in hospitalization length of stay (P < .001), 0.8 ± 1.9 lesser admission (P < .001), and 0.6 ± 2.2 fewer ED visits (P < .02). Participants with longest index hospitalization were observed to have greatest reduction in length of stay. 6MWD and MBI scores improved by 41.0 ± 60.2 m and 12.3 ± 11.6 points, respectively (both P < .001). Greater improvement was observed in patients with lower baseline 6MWD and MBI scores. Prescription of slow-release opioids rose from 9% to 49%. Treatment for anxiety and depression rose from 5% to 19%.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

Integrating palliative care with postexacerbation functional rehabilitation was associated with short-term reduction in health care utilization, improved functional capacity, and increased treatment of dyspnea, anxiety, and depression.

A Virtual Reality-Supported Intervention for Pulmonary Rehabilitation of Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Mixed Methods Study

BACKGROUND

The uptake of traditional pulmonary rehabilitation classes by patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is poor because of personal factors that prevent accessibility to the venue. Therefore, there is a need for innovative methods of pulmonary rehabilitation, and virtual reality (VR) could be a promising technology for patients with COPD to access services remotely.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to investigate whether VR improves compliance with pulmonary rehabilitation among patients with COPD, a particularly vulnerable patient group (Medical Research Council [MRC] 4 or 5), and whether VR provides a credible alternative to traditional pulmonary rehabilitation programs.

METHODS

This was an 8-week patient trial using an innovative VR pulmonary rehabilitation program. A purposive sample of 10 patients with COPD graded MRC 4 or 5 and registered at a selected health care center and a hospital in Cumbria, United Kingdom, were included. Qualitative (focus groups and interviews) data were collected, and to further support the qualitative findings, quantitative data (self-report patient surveys) were gathered before and after the 8-week trial. The 5 self-reported surveys included the Patient Activation Measure, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Short Physical Performance Battery, and the Edmonton Frail Scale.

RESULTS

In a thematic analysis of the qualitative data, 11 themes emerged specific to delivering pulmonary rehabilitation using VR. The quantitative data further support the qualitative findings by revealing significant improvements in all physical measures.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, this study demonstrates how remotely supervised VR-based pulmonary rehabilitation could help to overcome current issues and limitations associated with providing this service to patients with COPD at scale.

Trapped in my lungs and fighting a losing battle. A phenomenological study of patients living with chronic obstructive and pulmonary disease

Chronic obstructive and pulmonary disease (COPD) has detrimental effects on individuals with the disease. COPD causes breathlessness, morbidity and associated psychosocial distress. This study was guided by the phenomenological question what is it like to have COPD and situated in Van Manen's phenomenology of practice. Experiential material was gathered through phenomenological interviews. Four themes emerged from the lived experiences of patients living with COPD: breath as a possibility; being vigilant; fighting a losing battle; and feeling isolated from others. For patients with COPD, breathing becomes ever-present and shifts from the invisible background of daily living to the central activity around which everyday life is organised. COPD patients always monitor their own breath and scrutinise the environment on possible dangers that can affect their breathing. Whenever moving or being involved in an activity, a part of their mind is preoccupied with the breathing. Although COPD patients realise that no amount of good behaviour will matter and that the decline of their lungs is inevitable, they make every effort to take good care of their body. They anticipate and avoid triggers of breathlessness isolating them from social interactions and activities. The appearance of the body as a source of social embarrassment also has an isolating effect. This study shows that breathlessness is a constant horizon that frames the experience of COPD patients. It is a limiting factor and determines their entire life. A more profound understanding of these experiences in healthcare professionals will contribute to person-centred care for COPD patients.

Patients and informal caregivers' experiences of burden of treatment in lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): a systematic review and synthesis of qualitative research

OBJECTIVE

To identify, characterise and explain common and specific features of the experience of treatment burden in relation to patients living with lung cancer or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and their informal caregivers.

DESIGN

Systematic review and interpretative synthesis of primary qualitative studies. Papers were analysed using constant comparison and directed qualitative content analysis.

DATA SOURCES

CINAHL, EMBASE, MEDLINE, PsychINFO, Scopus and Web of Science searched from January 2006 to December 2015.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTING STUDIES

Primary qualitative studies in English where participants were patients with lung cancer or COPD and/or their informal caregivers, aged >18 years that contain descriptions of experiences of interacting with health or social care in Europe, North America and Australia.

RESULTS

We identified 127 articles with 1769 patients and 491 informal caregivers. Patients, informal caregivers and healthcare professionals (HCPs) acknowledged lung cancer's existential threat. Managing treatment workload was a priority in this condition, characterised by a short illness trajectory. Treatment workload was generally well supported by an immediacy of access to healthcare systems and a clear treatment pathway. Conversely, patients, informal caregivers and HCPs typically did not recognise or understand COPD. Treatment workload was balanced with the demands of everyday life throughout a characteristically long illness trajectory. Consequently, treatment workload was complicated by difficulties of access to, and navigation of, healthcare systems, and a fragmented treatment pathway. In both conditions, patients' capacity to manage workload was enhanced by the support of family and friends, peers and HCPs and diminished by illness/smoking-related stigma and social isolation.

CONCLUSION

This interpretative synthesis has affirmed significant differences in treatment workload between lung cancer and COPD. It has demonstrated the importance of the capacity patients have to manage their workload in both conditions. This suggests a workload which exceeds capacity may be a primary driver of treatment burden.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42016048191.

Stigma and the in(visible) perspectives and expectations of home oxygen therapy among people with chronic breathlessness syndrome: A qualitative study

Background:

Chronic breathlessness syndrome in the context of advancing disease is distressing for all concerned. Oxygen is commonly prescribed in this setting; however, little is known about the perspectives of breathless people who either are on oxygen or are yet to have it prescribed.

Aim:

To understand and describe the perspectives and experiences of breathless people towards oxygen use at home.

Design:

This qualitative study utilised an interpretive description approach using semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis.

Setting/participants:

A total of 19 people with chronic breathlessness syndrome living in South Australia participated in semi-structured interviews. Participants were divided into sub-groups according to whether they were chronically breathless and (1) not using home oxygen ( n = 6), (2) using funded home oxygen for severe hypoxaemia ( n = 7) and (3) using home oxygen for palliation outside of funding guidelines ( n = 6).

Results:

Three main themes were identified: (1) managing distress and living with chronic breathlessness syndrome, with or without oxygen, requires a range of self-management strategies; (2) expectations of oxygen use: ‘Not as good as I thought it would be’; and (3) the stigma of using oxygen: the visible and invisible.

Conclusion:

People living with chronic breathlessness struggle daily with both the progression of the underlying disease and the distressing nature of the syndrome. While oxygen does provide benefit for some people, its use and the perceptions of its use are often associated with both the visible and invisible manifestations of stigma. Clinicians need to promote self-management strategies and give careful thought to the prescribing of home oxygen, especially outside the current funding guidelines.

The meaning of the name of 'pulmonary rehabilitation' and its influence on engagement with individuals with chronic lung disease

Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is recommended for all individuals living with a lung condition and chronic breathlessness. This article considers how adopting an interdisciplinary, medical humanities approach to the term 'pulmonary rehabilitation' might unpack some of the misconceptions, misrepresentations or negative connotations surrounding it, which have been largely overlooked in explanations of the low uptake of this programme. Taking key insights from Wellcome Trust-funded Life of Breath project, including ethnographic research in community fitness groups in North East England and the 'Breath Lab' special interest group, this article outlines how the whole-body approach of PR is not easily understood by those with lung conditions; how experience can inform breath perception through the pacing of everyday life; and how stigma can impact rehabilitation. This article highlights the value of medical humanities in working through communicative challenges evident in the translation of PR between patient and clinical contexts and sets out two arts-based approaches (Singing for Lung Health and dance movement) as potential options that could be included in the PR referral. Finally, the article outlines the need for collaborative research exploring the communication and meaning of healthcare strategies and experiences at the interface of the arts, humanities and medical practice.

Living with breathlessness: a systematic literature review and qualitative synthesis

What is the experience of people living with breathlessness due to medical conditions, those caring for them and those treating them, with regard to quality of life and the nature of clinical interactions?Electronic databases (Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL Plus and PsycINFO) were searched (January 1987 to October 2017; English language), for qualitative studies exploring the experience of chronic breathlessness (patients, carers and clinicians). Two independent reviewers screened titles, abstracts and papers retrieved against inclusion criteria. Disagreements were resolved with a third reviewer. Primary qualitative data were extracted and synthesised using thematic synthesis.Inclusion and synthesis of 101 out of 2303 international papers produced four descriptive themes: 1) widespread effects of breathlessness; 2) coping; 3) help-seeking behaviour; and 4) clinicians' responsiveness to the symptom of breathlessness. The themes were combined to form the concept of "breathing space", to show how engaged coping and appropriate help-seeking (patient) and attention to symptom (clinician) helps maximise the patient's quality of living with breathlessness.Breathlessness has widespread impact on both patient and carer and affects breathing space. The degree of breathing space is influenced by interaction between the patient's coping style, their help-seeking behaviour and their clinician's responsiveness to breathlessness itself, in addition to managing the underlying disease.

Self-rated health aspects among persons living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Purpose

To describe a cohort of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and perform a within-group comparison regarding self-management activation, social provision, and health status.

Patients and methods

A cross-sectional survey including 116 persons.

Results

The sample comprised 65 men and 38 women, mean age 69 years. Fourteen percent reported very high impact of COPD on their health; 19% had received pulmonary rehabilitation offers, 39% had been offered self-management education, and 64% had acute hospital admissions due to COPD complications in the past year. Persons with COPD Assessment Test (CAT) scores ≥30 reported significantly poorer self-management activation and significantly lower social provision than those reporting CAT scores <30. Number of COPD years had no significant influence on COPD health care consultations or self-management activation.

Conclusion

Persons with COPD reported decreasing social provision with increasing COPD years and poorer health status. Although COPD is a progressive disease, health status and self-management activation did not vary with number of COPD years. Those living with a very high COPD impact on health reported significantly lower self-management activation but fewer acute hospital admissions.

Practice implications

COPD patients’ need for pulmonary rehabilitation, self-management support, and social support should be assessed and appropriate services offered throughout the disease trajectory.

Rehabilitation of Discharged Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-Are New Strategies Needed?

Background:

Rehabilitation after hospital stay implies several benefits for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); still few patients are referred and participate in rehabilitation programs. We conducted a case study to investigate the effects of interventions targeting the referral, uptake, and completion for a program of early rehabilitation in the primary health-care sector.

Methods:

We undertook targeted initiatives to make patients participate in an individualized rehabilitation program with gradual increased intensity. After discharge, primary care COPD nurses and physiotherapists guided patients through progressing exercises in small groups online. Patients proceeded to class-based exercises, patient education and/or leisure activities, or continued telerehabilitation. We evaluated the effects of the intervention by assessing referral rates, completion, and readmission.

Results:

Sixteen (23% of discharged patients) patients were referred to rehabilitation. In comparison, only 1 (0.8%) in 131 patients from Vejle hospital was referred to Vejle hospital. Twelve patients completed rehabilitation, all having severe COPD. All started the program within 2 weeks and proceeded to the online-guided exercises within 4 weeks. Study data showed that after 30 days, 1 (6.3%) of the 16 patients in the rehabilitation program had been readmitted compared to 8 (14.8%) of 55 patients who were not referred. After 90 days, 2 (12.5%) and 11 (20.0%) patients were readmitted, respectively. The readmission rate showed a nonsignificant decline in patients participating in rehabilitation.

Conclusion:

This case study showed that the referral rate of patients with COPD to early municipal rehabilitation is extremely low without a targeted effort and still insufficient in spite of a focused intervention. We showed that completion of a municipal rehabilitation program shortly after discharge is possible even for patients with severe COPD. The findings from our pilot study can guide further investigations into the effect of implementation strategies for handovers between health-care sectors to secure early-onset rehabilitation of patients with COPD.

How Do People With COPD Value Different Activities? An Adapted Meta-Ethnography of Qualitative Research

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a long-term condition where activities of daily living (ADLs) may be very restricted; people with COPD need to prioritize what is important to them. We conducted a meta-ethnography to understand which ADLs are valued and why, systematically searching for articles including experiences of ADLs and organizing themes from the articles into five linked concepts: (a) caring for the body, (b) caring for the personal environment, (c) moving between spaces, (d) interacting with others, and (e) selfhood across time. In addition, we identified three key aspects of personal integrity: effectiveness, connectedness, and control. We found that ADLs were valued if they increased integrity; however, this process was also informed by gendered roles and social values. People whose sense of control depended on effectiveness often found accepting help very difficult to bear; therefore, redefining control as situational and relational may help enjoyment of activities that are possible.

Inspiring change: humanities and social science insights into the experience and management of breathlessness

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Breathlessness can be debilitating for those with chronic conditions, requiring continual management. Yet, the meaning of breathlessness for those who live with it is poorly understood in respect of its subjective, cultural, and experiential significance. This article discusses a number of current issues in understanding the experience of breathlessness.

RECENT FINDINGS

Effective communication concerning the experience of breathlessness is crucial for diagnosis, to identify appropriate treatment, and to provide patients with the capacity to self-manage their condition. However, there is an evident disconnect between the way breathlessness is understood between clinical and lay perspectives, in terms of awareness of breathlessness, the way symptoms are expressed, and acknowledgement of how it affects the daily lives of patients.

SUMMARY

The review highlights the need for integrated multidisciplinary work on breathlessness, and suggests that effective understanding and management of breathlessness considers its wider subjective and social significance.