COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) patients in most countries of the world are discriminated against, compared to those of other major diseases, and for this reason they have established a roadmap to fight against this situation at a global level. This is the main conclusion of the "I Global Meeting of Patients with COPD", held these days in Madrid and which has brought together for the first time heads of patient associations, doctors and industry representatives from 20 countries on five continents. The event has been organized by the COPD Foundation of the United States, with the support of numerous European and Spanish institutions and organisations.

Launch of a “Global Initiative for COPD”

After a conference in which nearly 30 patients from 20 countries on five continents have participated, a global initiative for COPD has been designed. It establishes the needs common to all of them and a roadmap has been established, the results of which will be announced next year at a new patient meeting. The objectives of that roadmap include:

1. Fight against the discrimination suffered by COPD patients, in three main aspects:

The attention paid to other chronic diseases, such as diabetes or cardiovascular diseases, makes it difficult to give visibility to COPD.

COPD patients receive discriminatory treatment when traveling, especially by airlines. Treatment that is reflected in the increase in costs or the fact that certain companies do not accept this type of passenger.

The treatment is also discriminatory when it comes to applying smoking cessation programs in patients with COPD. The pulmonologist in many countries does not establish anti-smoking protocols with COPD patients and yet it is the first thing that is applied in patients with cardiovascular problems.

2. Put patients in contact with patient associations that they can go to in their country, anonymously, to obtain information and support for their health.
3. Improve the doctor-patient relationship with COPD. This relationship will be more favorable if at the time of diagnosis the doctor offers a sensitive explanation about the disease and how to deal with it through the most appropriate way of life.
4. Improve access to early diagnosis. It is the only way to improve the quality of life of COPD patients, since the decline of the disease is irreversible
5. Introduce self-care programs for chronic respiratory patients and facilitate access to pulmonary rehabilitation or appropriate exercise plans
6. Education in schools, not only with students, but also with families and teachers to highlight the importance of lung health, in addition to anti-smoking campaigns
7. Incorporate social media and ICTs: their integration in the daily life of COPD patients will be essential to improve their participation in patient movements on a national and global scale
8. Overcome the barriers of guilt and responsibility generated by smoking and promote the necessary awareness in society and those responsible for socio-health policy
9. Increase resources and services -until now scarce- to support this patient profile inside and outside the public health system
10. Improve communication to give more visibility to the population with COPD: the objective is to highlight that it is not a disease linked exclusively to older people or smokers, but rather that the incidence is increasing in younger people, especially women.

The meeting, prior to World COPD Day, has had the support of the Lovexair Foundation and the EPOC Foundation and with the participation of various European lung organizations. More information: http://www.copdfoundation.org/Global-Patient-Leadership-Summit.aspx