The number of people dying from asthma in the U.K. is rising, with hundreds “needlessly” passing from the disease every year, a charity has warned.
Around 12,000 people died of asthma in the country over the last ten years, with the annual toll a quarter higher than it was a decade ago, according to Asthma + Lung UK.
This is despite evidence that about two-thirds of such deaths are preventable, according to a review written by the Royal College of Physicians back in 2014.
Overuse of reliever inhalers and underuse of preventer inhalers are both risk factors for U.K. asthma deaths, as is a lack of follow-up after a recent emergency hospital visit, report authors found.
As part of the review, they published a set of recommendations for reducing deaths linked to the disease, including making sure people with the condition were offered regular asthma reviews, documented asthma treatment plans and inhaler technique checks.
But even today, almost 70% of people surveyed by Asthma + Lung UK aren’t getting this basic care package. And few receive appropriate follow up after an emergency admission to hospital, the charity stated.
It’s recommended that these patients see a family doctor within two days of leaving hospital. But less than 20% of those surveyed said they had. And 40% didn’t have a follow up within 28 days.
Asthma is a relatively common respiratory condition. It affects some 5.4 million people in the U.K., which has a population of about 67 million.
RCP clinical vice president John Dean said hospital and community teams were currently unable to “deliver the care they know people with asthma need.”
Instead of offering a preventative approach to care, the public health system was largely stuck “treating emergencies.” Although clinical leaders are “ready to lead that change,” they couldn’t deliver it alone. It requires “political will, and a workforce to deliver it,” he said in a statement.
Family doctor and Asthma + Lung UK clinical lead Andy Whittamore said people with asthma often don’t realise they’ve reached a point where they need to seek help.
“It shouldn’t get to the point where someone is rushed to hospital fighting for breath,” he said. “We need a better awareness of the seriousness of asthma, and a focus on supporting people to manage their condition themselves. While healthcare professionals need to have the training, time and resources to understand each individual to ensure they get the basic care they need.”
Sarah MacFadyen, who leads policy and external affairs for the charity said it was “scandalous” that a decade on from the RCP report “four people are still dying needlessly from the condition every day.”
“Asthma care is in crisis. People are not getting the care they need and deserve. As a result the UK continues to have one of the worst asthma death rates in Europe,” she said. “We don’t want to be saying the same thing in another ten years; this is a problem we know how to fix.”
As well as improving adherence to the RCP review’s recommentations, the charity wants the U.K. government to introduce national targets on preventable asthma deaths. It blames “complacency around asthma” for a failure to reduce deaths over the last decade.
By investing in care, as well as research into technologies that help people self-manage the condition, MacFayen said policymakers could “save lives and improve people’s health and quality of life,” as well as reduce the impact of the disease on the country’s public healthcare system.
