Oxygen Service Helping People Retain Independence

(PhysOrg.com) -- Could you manage to maintain and use an oxygen device correctly in your own home - if your life depended on it?

That's the challenge facing hundreds of residents across north Derbyshire who have respiratory problems - and it is Steven Collis' job to ensure that they are confident using such equipment correctly.

Steven has recently been appointed as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Home Oxygen Assessment, a new role set up between Chesterfield Royal Hospital and Derbyshire County Primary Care Trust.

He has praised a unique course at the University of Derby which helped him land the post - the PG Cert (Certificate) in Interprofessional Practice. The certificate is also recognised as a formal teaching qualification by the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the Higher Education Academy.

The course aims to help health and social care professionals to learn teaching skills so they can also become educators for their organisation.

Steven, 31, said: "A huge part of the role of a nurse specialist is education - both for patients and for clinicians. I feel that the qualification I gained at Derby did help me to obtain the post and has prepared me for the teaching aspect of the role."

Steven is largely based out in the community, working with more than 600 registered users who are referred to him via their GP or health service - and he makes regular home visits to check their progress.

There are perils in patients taking in too much oxygen as well as too little oxygen, and training is also needed to build their confidence up in using the equipment and checking its maintenance.

Before applying for the role, Steven was a charge nurse in clinical skills at Chesterfield Royal Hospital.

Sally French, 57, from Portland Avenue, Bolsover, has been involved with the scheme since August. She suffers from aortic stenosis (a narrowing of the aortic valve in the heart) and COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) a respiratory condition which affects the lungs, which has left her short of breath for the last year. She was also born with scoliosis which creates a curvature of the spine which has further complicated her condition.

She was referred to Steven from her community matron based at her GP's surgery who was concerned about her low blood oxygenation levels which caused her shortness of breath.

She said: "Any kind of exertion makes me out of breath, whether it's walking within the house or while I'm out shopping, and I get scared when it happens."

Sally lost her husband Andy in 2007 and is a widow. She used to worry if she had an attack if no-one was around to help her. Through the oxygen service, she now has a concentrator which she can use 15 hours a day in the home and a mobile oxygen cylinder for when she is out and about. Steven has trained her to use the equipment safely herself.

Sally added: "This service is wonderful and has been life-changing. I have a lot more confidence and I can do much more now. I may ride my scooter later in the year and my holiday in Norfolk last year was far more enjoyable with the portable oxygen."

Steven completed the course at the University of Derby's Kedleston Road site this summer, and his University tutor Richelle Duffy, Assistant Head of Subject, Nursing and Health Care Practice, said: "Steven is a great example of how the skills developed in teaching and learning can be applied across a wide area of practice. Today's education - like healthcare must be delivered in a dynamic and responsive way to meet the needs of our service users and future workforce."

More information:
www.derby.ac.uk/health/nursing/courses

Provided by University of Derby