South Ayrshire HSCP launch a new pilot offering COPD testing at Girvan Community Hospital

The South Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) is delighted to be funding a new Spirometry testing pilot to support early diagnosis for respiratory conditions. Spirometry testing is used in the diagnosis of various lung conditions such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Tuesday 28^th January saw the first patients attend the newly established clinics at Girvan Community Hospital.

The focus of this pilot is to help provide easier diagnosis for lung conditions such as COPD within the community, in so doing, reducing unnecessary admissions at Emergency Departments (ED). Undiagnosed patients can present at ED acutely unwell and experience long stays in hospital which can be avoided with appropriate diagnosis at an earlier stage. Staff at South Ayrshire HSCP applied for funding to enable easier access to these tests as a pilot for South Ayrshire residents with a view to rolling out clinics across Ayrshire should they prove to be successful.

Councillor Hunter, Portfolio Holder for Health and Care Services said, "I am delighted that HSCP staff are working alongside public health colleagues in NHS Ayrshire & Arran to improve access to these tests in the community. The test of change is an opportunity to demonstrate the impact this could have on our strained hospitals and help tackle inappropriate admissions and delayed discharges."

"This example of preventative treatment is exactly what we need given the strain on our NHS nationally. We hope the learning from this pilot will help direct more local authorities to invest in more community-based practice which will help ensure our hospitals are available for those who really need them."

The pilot will provide 1000 tests over the period of 18 months and will be made available across three sites in South Ayrshire, initially starting in Girvan Community Hospital with two additional sites already under development at both Ayr and Troon. Once the pilot is underway the data gathered will be used to make a case to extend this testing across the full Ayrshire and Arran health board area.

Dr Philip Hulme, Clinical Director South Ayrshire HSCP said, "I am excited to get this pilot underway. I have been working with the team involved in securing funding to take this forward and we are confident that this project will make a real difference to our communities. As a GP myself, I know the impact these tests can make to early diagnosis, so I am delighted to be able to bring these back to the community."