Leicester doctor reducing asthma admissions

One of our academics has played a key role in a new national drive to reduce asthma deaths and hospital admissions.

Dr Hitesh Pandya, who is a Senior Lecturer in Paediatric Respiratory at our University, helped compile a care check list for treating asthma patients in NHS hospitals across the country.

The initiative was created in response to the National Review of Asthma Deaths (NRAD) which found that 10 per cent of asthma deaths happened within just one month of discharge from hospital following treatment.

Dr Pandya said: “We believe that if hospital staff start implementing just five simple steps we could see a huge reduction in future life-threatening attacks and hospital admissions, which will save lives and money

“We have devised a simple check list which is a series of research-based actions that if systematically delivered by health professionals, can really improve the health of patients. The concept has already been used successfully to improve the care and treatment of chronic lung disease (COPD) patients.”

The document is a joint initiative between the British Thoracic Society (BTS) and Asthma UK.