CHESTLearning & EventsBridging Specialties

Bridging Specialties^®

Building a bridge to close diagnosis and treatment gaps

Uniting clinicians across specialties to tackle shared goals

Clinicians are focused on one mission—better outcomes for their patients. That’s why we’re working to improve diagnosis, treatment, and quality of life for patients across the country through interdisciplinary collaboration and communication among our specialized areas.

Together, using our combined strengths, new, clinician-guided approaches to common gaps in diagnosis and treatment can be addressed.

BRIDGING SPECIALTIES

Timely Diagnosis and Treatment for COPD

Research shows that the opportunity to diagnose COPD at an earlier stage is missed in about two-thirds of patients with COPD. That’s a problem, since delayed diagnosis is linked to a higher rate of exacerbations, more comorbidities, and increased costs compared with an early diagnosis.

Access resources for guidance on how to administer appropriate diagnostic tests, determine the severity of disease, and proceed with next steps in the treatment and management of COPD.

ACCESS COPD RESOURCES

BRIDGING SPECIALTIES

Timely Diagnosis for ILD

An estimated 400,000 patients in the US are affected by interstitial lung disease (ILD), which often goes undetected because of its relatively low occurrence and common symptoms, including dyspnea, cough, and fatigue. While there’s currently no cure for ILD, treatment can help delay progression and diminish the severity of symptoms.

Our ILD Clinician Toolkit contains specific resources focusing on the steps to take when a patient displays signs of ILD, including an ILD-specific patient questionnaire you can use in your practice, a decision-making tool that walks you through various patient scenarios, and much more.

ACCESS ILD RESOURCES

COMING NEXT | Clinical tools to help diagnose and treat nontuberculous mycobacteria disease and bronchiectasis

”Patients first see their family medicine or primary care clinicians, and, all too often, the most complex lung diseases present in ways that are indistinguishable from more common conditions like asthma and COPD. Bringing together experts in both fields will yield the best results in creating a path to diagnosis.”

– William Lago, MD, Family Medicine Physician

”While interstitial lung diseases do not affect a substantial amount of the population, those touched by the disease are impacted tremendously. Any delay in receiving a diagnosis is time that could be dedicated to finding a treatment therapy that can improve their quality of life.”

– Andrew H. Limper, MD, FCCP, Pulmonologist

”Closing the gap in diagnosing ILDs like pulmonary fibrosis is critical so therapies can be initiated to manage the symptoms and progression of the disease.”

– Mary Beth Scholand, MD, FCCP, Director, Interstitial Lung Disease Clinic

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Bridging Specialties®

Building a bridge to close diagnosis and treatment gaps

Uniting clinicians across specialties to tackle shared goals

Timely Diagnosis and Treatment for COPD

Timely Diagnosis for ILD

Bridging Specialties^®