The MND Breathing Support project has just completed its FIRST year – and phenomenal financial support from CAWC has put it on the path to great success.
I am Sue Eddy, Advanced Physiotherapist in Palliative Care/ Specialist MND Respiratory Care, and I am part of the team at the Buckinghamshire NHS Trust Palliative care unit tasked with delivering the The Motor Neurone Disease Breathing (Respiratory) Support project. I attended the CAWC Christmas Bazaar in 2021 and it was absolutely amazing! Beautiful, beautiful stalls and fabulous food and drink. Every bit of the funds raised will go to expanding and deepening the support we’re able to give MND sufferers and their loved ones. They raised over £25,000 in one day. This wonderful contribution has:
- Innovatively funded 598 specialist complex respiratory hours, dedicated to support sufferers and their loved ones.
- Increased one clinician’s hours by 30 per cent.
- Patients have have had symptoms of breathlessness and distress treated and have been given practical techniques, relaxation and anxiety management, medication advice, carer education, and equipment and care from diagnosis to dying.
- They have had saliva, secretion, and chest clearance techniques and management.
- Non-invasive ventilation has been offered, adjusted and adapted through patient’s journeys, into end of life care.
- Patients have also had cough assist technology, suction machines and nebulisers prescribed and issued.
Success in numbers… how this first year has made an impact:
Volume of patient care:
- 50 individual MND patients received treatment interventions in 2021
- 621+ MND patient care interventions given in 2021
- A 168 per cent increase in caseload of MND patients (54 versus 32 annual pre-project)
- A 310 per cent increase in MND referrals (31 versus 10 annual pre-project)
- A 433 per cent increase in support to MND RIP (26 versus 6 annual pre-project)
Why the need to achieve a full three year project?:
- The first year is introducing, and establishing the project; starting to make a difference to quality and quantity patient care
- The second year: A full year establishing and embedding provision, delivering improvements to patient experience and care. Ongoing collation and audit of data.
- The third year: Ongoing patient care provision; auditing, analysing and demonstrating need. Evidencing, requesting and achieving commissioned, ongoing funding from the NHS.
We’re very excited about delivering and developing the Breathing support project further in 2022. Every bit of the funds raised, will go to expanding and deepening the support we’re able to give MND sufferers and their loved ones.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!