Over 130 lung tests in Ebbw Vale and Rhyl
We went north and south for our latest two lung testing events. On 2 March we were in Ebbw Vale, in the heart of the south Wales valleys, where we tested 55 people, including local Assembly Member Trish Law. On 5 March we went north to the seaside town of Rhyl, where we tested 81 people in the local shopping centre. We've now held 6 lung testing events so far, with almost 300 tests carried out. 22% of the people we've tested have had a below-average reading, and have been given a referral to their GP. More lung testing events will be taking place in the next few months.
Working with others to improve lung health and services
Much of our work involves collaborating with other organisations who are also working for better lung health and services. For example, we manage the Respiratory Alliance Wales, which is made up of a wide range of organisations in the field. We're also part of the Welsh Thoracic Society, which brings together health professionals, as well as the Wales Tobacco Control Alliance.
BLF Wales highlights lung cancer
New statistics released in early February by the Welsh Assembly government show a rise in cases of lung cancer. We used the announcement as an opportunity to highlight the need to devote more attention to lung cancer. BLF Wales chair Dr Emrys Evans, a specialist in lung cancer, said: " we have to keep up the good work to tackle the causes, especially smoking. And we need to encourage anyone showing symptoms - such as a troublesome cough - to get themselves checked out straight away". We used the statistics and our comment to get a full-page article on the subject in the Western Mail and a feature on the BBC Wales website.
Llanelli and Kinmel Bay groups help others breathe easy
Breathe Easy groups in Llanelli and Kinmel Bay have been raising money to help people with lung conditions.
Llanelli group (pictured right) recently presented a cheque for £500 to BLF Wales committee member Dr Phil Kloer support the work of BLF Wales. The group has organised all manner of fundraising events, from curry nights to a sponsored abseil off a clifftop!
Kinmel Bay group (right) have also been busy fundraising, and the money they raised was used to buy four travel nebulisers for patients at the nearby Glan Clwyd hospital. These mean that patients with lung conditions are able to travel, as the nebulisers allow them to take their medicine with them.
February newsletter
Annual survey results, and a look ahead to 2010: find out more in our BLF Wales newsletter.
Breathe Easy Neath Valley rings a bell!
Breathe Easy Neath Valley had Catwg Bellringers at their December meeting, who rang a selection of Christmas tunes, before getting everyone involved in bellringing-by-numbers. Dr Emrys Evans, respiratory consultant and chair of BLF Wales, attended to show his support and gratitude to the group, presenting them with a certificate to mark their fundraising efforts.
Cake stall raises cash for BLF Wales
Respiratory nurse Sheila Pugh kindly took charge of setting up a cake stall in Aberystwyth.
Sheila was aiming to help raise much needed funds for BLF Wales and
Breathe Easy Aberystwyth, our support group that Sheila attends as Treasurer. The stall raised a WHOPPING £235 from its cake sales. If you would like to do something similar, Ring our team on 01792 455764 or
email us to get some ideas and support.
Lung testing at the livestock market
The BLF Wales team were in Welshpool livestock market on 7 December, offering free lung tests to farmers and other visitors.
The market draws farmers from across Wales and beyond, and the day we were there they were holding the largest sheep sale in Europe!
The lung tests were carried out by BLF respiratory nurse Shirley Pickstock, who covers the north Powys area. Of the 25 people tested, 7 were referred to their GP. For everyone tested, it was an opportunity to find out more about looking after their lungs.
We are planning more lung testing events for 2010.
Picture - Farmer Mr Williams about to have his lung test in Welshpool livestock market, with BLF respiratory nurse Shirley Pickstock and her colleague Becky Richards.
BLF Wales December 2009 Newsletter
BLF Wales have published the December edition of the Wales newsletter which you can download.
Putting COPD in the spotlight - World COPD Day
World COPD Day was November 18th. It was a golden opportunity to raise the profile of COPD, and the BLF team and Breathe Easy groups across Wales took full advantage.
We worked in three ways to put the spotlight on COPD and lung conditions:
Breathe Easy Groups raise awareness
Across Wales, BE groups organised stands and displays which highlighted COPD and the support and information available.
Wrexham held a "Brew and Bara Brith" session, Kinmel Bay had a stand in the local shopping centre, and Swansea, Torfaen, Pontypridd and Rhondda, Gilfach Goch, Merthyr Neath Valley and Cardiff all had stands in local hospitals and other venues.
Spotlight on COPD: Nurse Sameera de Melverda at the display in Ystradgynlais Hospital with Neath Valley group secretary Margaret Barnard.
Lobbying Assembly Members in Cardiff Bay
On World COPD Day we held a breakfast reception for Assembly Members in the Assembly building. We were delighted to see AMs from north, south and mid-Wales and all four main parties.
It was an opportunity for them to find out more about COPD, and to hear about the issues first-hand from members of our committee, including patients and health professionals.
Talking to the decision-makers: Brian Lawley, chairman of Swansea Breathe Easy (centre) speaking to the leader of the Conservative Party in Wales, Nick Bourne AM, with BLF development officer Adrian Bailey. Using the media to highlight COPD
COPD was in the news across Wales, the day before World COPD Day itself, as a result of our media work. Our message was that COPD is a major health problem in Wales, but that awareness of it is dangerously low.
The story was covered on BBC Wales Today and other TV news, Radio Wales, the BBC website, the Western Mail and the Daily Post, as well as other local newspapers.
BLF Wales chairman Dr Emrys Evans being interviewed by the BBC
See the story and film clip on the BBC Wales Website
See the feature in the Western Mail
Breathe Easy Haverfordwest launched
Breathe Easy Haverfordwest has become the newest addition to the network of over 20 Breathe Easy groups located across Wales.
The group formally launched at Haverfordwest Leisure Centre on the afternoon of 27 October 2009.
Over a dozen people attended as well as a number of local health care professionals.
No doubt the group will continue to go from strength to strength with the support of our south Wales Development Officer Adrian Bailey.
Visit the BE Haverfordwest's own web page for their next meet group meeting. For further information please give Adrian a call on 01792 455764.
Haverfordwest lung testing event is a success!
The BLF Wales team manned a lung health awareness stand at the Harvest Fayre Farmers Market in Haverfordwest on Friday 2 October 2009
Plenty of information was made available regarding how to maintain lung health, the symptoms of lung disease and the support available from BLF Wales including the local Breathe Easy group.
On the day more than 30 people aged over 35 and experiencing symptoms of lung disease; such as breathlessness or a persistent cough, were offered a free lung function test. Of those tested 13% were shown to have below average lung function and were therefore advised to see their GP.
The event was part of a series of lung testing events that aim to raise awareness of the symptoms of lung disease as well as the importance of early diagnosis.
To find out more about upcoming lung testing events in your area please give the team a call on 01792 455764.
Breathe Easy Neath Valley donates spirometer to local hospital
Breathe Easy Neath Valley havedonated a spirometer worth almost £3000 to Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University NHS Trust.
The group raised the money to purchase the portable spirometer through holding a number of fundraising events including an abseil at Dinas Rock earlier this year. See Wales Online for pre-Abseil media release.
At the group's September meeting clinical nurse specialists Christine Burrows and Katrina Davies came along to receive the donation.
Breathe Easy Llanelli hold fundraising abseil.
Brave supporters of Breathe Easy Llanelli took part in a fundraising abseil at Rhossili Point on 8 September 2009.
Members of the group, their friends and families and a number of volunteers from the local respiratory team took part in the abseil and hope to have raised hundreds of pounds.
Red Rock International, based in Llanelli, volunteered to run the event free of charge and did a fantastic job on the day giving everyone who was brave enough the chance to abseil down the cliff face and try a bit of rock climbing.
South Wales Development Officer for the British Lung Foundation Wales, Adrian Bailey, really enjoyed attending the abseil:
“The whole event was great fun for all involved. Those taking part gave it their all and the money raised will make a real difference to the group.”
Congratulations to all who took part!
(photo shows abseilers taking part at the BE Llanelli fundraising event)
Breathe Easy Merthyr donate Oximeters to local respiratory team.
Breathe Easy Merthyr Tydfil have reached out to support others with breathing problems by donating equipment to the respiratory team at Prince Charles Hospital.
Over the past few years the group has donated a range of equipment to the chest department at PrinceCharlesHospital as a way of helping others who live with a lung condition and the staff who care for them.
At their August meeting Chair Mary Lewis presented Dr Anthony Gibson, Consultant at PrinceCharlesHospital, with their latest donation: 3 pulse oximeters which are used to measure the amount of oxygen in a patient’s blood.
The pulse oximeters will be used by the three respiratory teams that cover the areas from which the group draws its members which is primarily Merthyr Tydfil itself and surrounding areas.
Dr. Gibson himself leads one of these teams and the others are headed up by Consultants Dr. Hand and Dr El-Nazer. All three teams are very grateful for the donation and will put the pulse oximeters to good use as soon as possible.
Breathe Easy Wrexham and District
Breathe Easy Wrexham held a special meeting with Assembly Member for North Wales, Mark Isherwood, during the first week of September.
The meeting was a great success and the group was pleased to see such a big turnout including members of neighbouring group Breathe Easy Mold.
Mr. Isherwood was interested to hear all of the group’s concerns and experiences and was concerned to hear about the waiting times for pulmonary rehabilitation in the area. The group did a fantastic job at highlighting the challenges that can be faced by people with a lung disease and Mr Isherwood has helped to organise a meeting for the group with the Chief Executive of North Wales NHS Trust to discuss their concerns.
(Photo shows members of Breathe Easy Wrexham with Mr. Isherwood at the Meet the Patients event earlier this year)
Breathe Easy Swansea meets with Bethan Jenkins AM
Breathe Easy Swansea Bay had an especially exciting September meeting as Assembly Member for South Wales West, Bethan Jenkins, came along to discuss pulmonary rehabilitation with the group.
The meeting went very well and Breathe Easy Members enjoyed having the chance to speak with their Assembly Member about their experiences of living with lung disease and the local services available to them.
(Photo shows Bethan Jenkins AM with BE SwanseaBay at their September meeting)
South Wales Breathe Easy Groups' Brecon Canal Trip
Breathe Easy groups from across south Wales went on a wonderfully relaxing day out on the Brecon canals on 22nd September 2009.
Members from several groups signed up to take part in what was most certainly a fun filled afternoon. Whilst seated comfortably inside the Barge the Breathe Easy members were treated to snacks and hot drinks whilst slowly travelling this historical waterway, a fantastic feat of engineering, built before roads and railways. Cruising through a canal lock and over an aqueduct over the River Usk. A beautiful adventure and a day to remember by all who were lucky enough to attend. 
If you would like more information on the routes the groups would have taken or if you would like to attend yourself then Dragonfly cruises are online to show you how.
BLF Wales August 2009 Newsletter
BLF Wales have published the August edition of the Wales newsletter which you can download.
Lung Testing in the community helps people take control of their lung health
The BLF Wales team held two lung testing events in June in a shopping centre in Llandudno and in a community hall in Wrexham.
Although both events were very different they had one thing in common – demand for a lung test was incredibly high!
At both events people joined long queues for the chance to check their lung health. In Wrexham the queue was 40 people long before the doors even opened.
The events were a huge success in terms of raising awareness about the symptoms of lung disease, letting people know about the support on offer from BLF and Breathe Easy and giving people a free lung test.
We were staggered by the number of people who gave a below average reading and needed to go back to their GP for further tests: in Llandudno 17% of people were referred back to their GP and in Wrexham this figure reached a massive 27%!
We hope that the events put a lot of people’s minds at rest and helped those who did have a below average lung function on the road to a diagnosis.
We will be holding a number of lung testing events across Wales in the autumn. Keep an eye on the website for more details!
Breathe Easy Week 2009 is a huge success for BLF Wales
Breathe Easy Week 2009 was a great success for BLF Wales with events held up and down the country to raise awareness about the British Lung Foundation, Breathe Easy and lung disease.
Breathe Easy groups put a lot of effort into getting the message out there with almost half of groups sending members to our Meet the Patients event at the National Assembly. At this event we campaigned for improvements in pulmonary rehabilitation services. Over 38 Assembly Members attended and already many have given their support to our campaign.
In north Wales Breathe Easy groups in Llandudno and Kinmel Bay came together to hold a fundraising walk in Llandudno. The groups had a great time and handed out information to people on Llandudno promenade.
In south Wales Breathe Easy groups in Bridgend and the LLynfi Valley organised a joint sponsored walk along Aberavon sea front. Despite torrential weather the walk was a lot of fun and helped to raise funds for the groups.
In Llanidloes one of BLF Wales’ newest groups held an information stand in the local Somerfield stores helping to spread the word about the British Lung Foundation Wales and Breathe Easy.
Similar information stands were held by groups in Cardiff, Merthyr and Swansea in venues including pharmacies and hospitals.
On the Friday of Breathe Easy Week we held a lung testing event in Wrexham where we offered 49 people a free spirometry test. Shockingly 27% of people we tested gave a below average reading and needed to go back to their GP for further tests.
Assembly member Lesley Griffiths came along to give her support alongside the Deputy Mayor of Wrexham. Representatives from organisations such as EPP, Red Cross and NPHS held stands with lots of useful information and despite having only just returned from Meet the Patients in Cardiff, Breathe Easy Wrexham came along to help out and provide the refreshments.
A big thank you to all involved!
