Border Asthma News

"Asthma is a significant problem for children in Cumbria with nearly 200 admitted to hospital each year.

"This represents a large number of days lost from school for some children and many of these admissions could be prevented if inhaler technique was improved.

"Many children forget to use their inhalers when they are symptom free, but regular use, especially in the cold weather is important in preventing the airways from becoming tight and making breathing difficult."

• Health
• Asthma
• Cumbria

Nykola Goodwill is a school nurse based in Carlisle and her daughter, Cat, has had asthma since she was a teenager.

She did not take her medicine regularly or properly, and suffered a major asthma attack three years ago.

Nykola and her family were unsure of what do.

She said:

"Prior to this she had never had anything other than a bit of a cough and even though

"I am a nurse and should know better but we knew nothing about asthma.

"We waited far too long to get help and by the time she got to hospital she was in a bad way.

"It has taken the last couple of years to get her asthma back under control and she has had a few more admissions since into hospital.

Nycola continued:

"Our own experience was frankly terrifying we saw a very rapid and out of the blue deterioration in our daughter's asthma and it was all preventable.

"When I came back to work I began looking at improving the service we offer to schools and their pupils."

The Cumbria Partnership Foundation NHS Trust is now working with school nurses and parents to raise awareness of asthma, to ensure the correct medication is taken.

• Health
• Asthma
• Cumbria

Asthma UK estimates that 1 in 10 Cumbrians has Asthma, and 172 children were rushed to hospital with asthma related breathing difficulties in 2012.

Figures show that while the number of emergency admissions in Cumbria is going down, the length of stay in hospitals is increasing.

Health professionals say that children are being admitted because their condition has seriously deteriorated, due to poor management of their medication.

• Health
• Asthma
• Cumbria

Doctors are urging young people to use their asthma inhalers properly after a concerning rise in hospital admissions.

Health professionals say many of these are due to children not using their inhalers properly and with potentially fatal consequences.

• Health
• Asthma
• Cumbria