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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease - Management
What information should self-management plans offer for people with COPD?
- People with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) should have a verbal and/or written self-management plan that provides personalized advice on:
- How to recognize the early signs of an exacerbation and respond appropriately.
- Lifestyle and medication issues to prevent exacerbations.
- Discuss and provide written information to all people with COPD on diet and exercise, and smoking cessation (if necessary).
- For people who have frequent exacerbations, provide a structured, written action plan on:
- How to recognize when COPD is getting worse (increased breathlessness, more sputum, coloured sputum, and/or fever).
- How to initially increase the use of short-acting bronchodilators, and if there is no response, when to contact a primary healthcare professional.
- If a person has a supply of medication at home, provide written information advising them:
- To start oral corticosteroid therapy if their increased breathlessness interferes with activities of daily living.
- To start antibiotics if sputum becomes discoloured or increases in volume.
- To contact a primary healthcare professional if they start treatment or are uncertain about whether to start treatment.
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