Excellence in National or Local Education Meetings/Stand-Alone Events

Summary of work

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of death globally. Around 190,000 severe hospitalised chronic lung disease exacerbations occur every year in England, costing the NHS £800m. COPD exacerbations are the second most common cause of emergency admission in the UK. Whilst 40% of patients are re-admitted or die within 90 days of discharge.
While these figures tell a powerful story, there remains a stark under-prioritisation of care across the UK for people living with COPD. Between 40 and 70% of people living with COPD are inappropriately treated according to global recommendations, leaving them at greater risk of experiencing an exacerbation.
It was against this backdrop that the ACT on COPD regional forum series was first conceived – a collaboration between MHP Communications and AstraZeneca.
Delivering a series of regional meetings designed to educate clinicians on the importance of acting earlier to prevent COPD exacerbations and agree upon next steps to drive practice change across the country, the meeting series brought together over 300 attendees and secured tangible and demonstratable shifts in the mindset and behaviours of clinicians when it comes to COPD prioritisation and clinical action.

Judges' comments

The ACT on COPD entry was a good meeting series, clearly written up with well-defined metrics. thorough implementation, good endorsements and well-rounded effectiveness data. A successful, solid programme that impressed the judges with its robustness.