Improving access to life-changing treatments
Jo is a patient representative on the Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation Partnership and NHS England Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC) programme to help improve access and uptake of life-changing biologics treatments. She explains why this programme is so important, the impact she hopes it will have and how she is making sure it meets the needs of people with asthma.
Biologic treatments have transformed the lives of many people with severe asthma. However, we know that three in four people who are eligible for these drugs are still missing out. This is why Asthma UK is working with the NHS England Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC) to help improve access and uptake of these life-changing treatments for people with severe asthma. You can also find out more on our severe asthma policy work in Wales and Scotland in our manifestos. The AAC is a partnership between patient groups, government bodies, industry, and NHS bodies, all working together to help improve the use of and access to, new innovations in healthcare.
People with severe asthma shouldn’t have to suffer anymore
The biologic drug I am on has been completely life-changing for me. I’ve been able to cut my oral steroid use by half and I rarely have to go to hospital anymore. However, it took me years to get on the biologic and in that time, I was disabled by my asthma and suffering from anxiety. I think I’m lucky because I live near a specialist severe asthma centre and so was able to access the treatment. Others aren’t so lucky and it’s not fair that where you live might impact the treatment you can get. That is why this programme is so important. We now have life-changing treatments and everyone who needs them should be able to access them.
We need to raise awareness and take action
I hope this programme will help raise awareness of biologics and increase the number of people being offered them. At the moment, the NHS doesn’t collect enough information about how many people have severe asthma and what treatment they get. I hope this programme will help us better understand how many people are missing out on the care they need and why they are missing out. By knowing this we can start to take action and get more people on these amazing drugs.
My experience is vital to the success of the programme
I think it’s really important to have people with asthma involved in the programme alongside health care professionals, researchers and policy people. Often clinicians don’t have the luxury of time to have meaningful conversations with us and they don’t necessarily understand the impact our asthma can have on our lives or what we think is important. As a member of the programme, I can bring my lived experience to the conversations and ensure the programme meets the needs of people with severe asthma and help ensure that it works for us. I can’t wait to see more people like me access these life-changing treatments in the future.
Find out if you should speak to your GP about a referral and biologic treatments by using Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation Partnership’s online interactive tool.
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