Milton Keynes Community Pulmonary Rehabilitation Service supports patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to manage their symptoms and improve their quality of life.
Pulmonary rehabilitation is a clinically-proven programme to help improve exercise tolerance and breathlessness. This programme can help people to spend less time in hospital and it reduces the number of times people need to visit their GP.
Our teams consists of highly specialist physiotherapists and rehabilitation assistants with specialist interest in pulmonary rehabilitation.
We also work closely with the multi-disciplinary team including occupational therapists and rapid response nurses.
The aims of the programme are:
- To support people to improve their ability to exercise
- To improve all round strength and stamina
- To improve ability to carry out daily activities
- To lessen the feeling and fear of feeling breathless.
The course is run once a week for eight weeks. Each session lasts for about one-and-a-half hours every Monday to Thursday mornings and afternoons across a variety of venues in Milton Keynes.
Each session includes roughly 45 minutes of a mix of specific exercises with on hand therapists to help those with lung disease.
After exercise you will have the chance take part in education sessions with healthcare professionals during which you will be able to ask questions to help better manage your condition.
You will also have the chance to enrol for more education with the MyCOPD app, or have written education information on the following topics:
- Why exercise?
- Breathing exercises and clearance techniques
- Coping with lung disease
- Exercising at home
- Inhaler and drug management
- Nutrition
- Stress management and relaxation
- Living with a long term health condition
You will also be given an exercise diary to be carried out at home to complement the exercise programme you will be undertaking in your course.
This service is for adults over the age of 18 who are registered with a Milton Keynes GP and who have a diagnosis of COPD.
We accept referrals from GPs and other healthcare professionals, such as consultants or practice nurses.
Download a referral form (opens word doc)
This service is not suitable for people who require diagnosis or who have cognitive issues, limited mobility due to muscular/skeletal neurological issues or unstable cardiovascular disease.
When you have been referred to the pulmonary rehabilitation team we will contact you to attend a session to find out about what we offer and more information about the courses available.
If you feel you would like to join up we will then invite you for assessment.
Your assessment will include:
1. Brief questions about the nature of your chest problems.
2. Completing several questionnaires relating to your lung condition and quality of life.
3. A walking assessment to note how you manage and any breathlessness.
4. Find out what you want to get from the programme.
Please bring details of all inhalers and medication that you are prescribed
We will assess you again at the end of the programme to measure improvements to your condition.
The service operates Mondays to Thursdays.
If you need help in a crisis, please do the following
- Contact the CNWL service looking after you during their office hours
- If the crisis is during when your service is closed, there are alternative options provided by the NHS found on this page.
- If you are not already being looked after by CNWL or elsewhere within the NHS, see your GP during normal working hours as they can then refer you to a local service.
Find your closest GP on NHS Choices.