In fear for our lives

Vulnerable chronic lung patients hit out at delays

PATIENTS with chronic lung disease who are extremely vulnerable to Covid-19 have given harrowing accounts of how they fear for their lives because of hospital delays.

One told how he thinks delays in hospital appointments, consultant visits and treatment will cut his life short.

‘It could be 12 months before I see a consultant again... So, my original [diagnosis of] three to five years of life might end up at about one-and-a-half to three years by the time I see a consultant,’ the man told the Irish Lung Fibrosis Association (ILFA).

Another revealed: ‘Truthfully, I’m only praying to God that I live through it. Initially, I was kind of out there trying to keep healthy and infection-free in my lungs and now you get this on top of it.’

‘Long term, I’d just be glad to be alive,’ the patient added.

Their comments are revealed in a new report from the ILFA, examining the effect of Covid-19 on lung fibrosis patients, carers and medical workers.

The charity said that Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) is a serious, progressive and life-limiting chronic respiratory illness.

About 1,200 patients in Ireland have IPF, but an increase in that number is likely as the population ages. Yet there is currently no clinical care programme for those with the disease, unlike what’s available for cancer and other serious respiratory illnesses.

ILFA chairman Eddie Cassidy said patients face an anxious and uncertain future.

‘Most people in Ireland are getting ready to return to work or return to some kind of normality but this won’t be possible for many of our patients who will remain high-risk and extremely vulnerable because of their underlying lung disease,’ he said.

‘The introduction of a clinical care pathway specifically for our patients is critical during what has been an extremely difficult time for them and their families.’

The charity has also warned that Covid-19 may also lead to future cases, given the characteristic type of lung injury associated with the coronavirus infection.

IPF patients develop scarring of the lungs (fibrosis) that gets worse with time, and which causes reduced lung capacity and ultimately respiratory failure. There is no cure for the condition.

A HSE spokesman said they are ‘aware of the impact of Covid on patients with broader chronic disease and the need to support a pathway of care which are now disrupted in a Covid environment,’ and added that they are developing care pathways ‘which keep patients safe in a Covid environment’.

No cure for the condition