"The course was a wake-up call for me"

I attended a 6-week Pulmonary Rehabilitation Course at the Royal Surrey County Hospital in the autumn.

The course was hugely beneficial and rewarding and was a wake-up call for me. It not only improved my fitness and well-being but more importantly the guidance and education provided by the PRU physiotherapists significantly increased my awareness and understanding of the factors affecting my COPD condition.

This aspect of the course has been a major benefit. I have already told my GP it would have been of even greater value had I attended the course much sooner. If this had happened, the benefit of the structured information and teaching provided during the course would certainly have afforded me a much better and earlier opportunity to best avoid, ameliorate and probably delay some of the worsening aspects of my COPD condition. I’m certain anything the PRU physiotherapists and colleagues can do to ensure this hands-on education aspect of The PRU work is offered sooner to patients with a COPD condition similar to mine, the more beneficial and effective it will be for the patients and the NHS.