So far over 1,300 people have shared their experience of asthma or shown their support on Asthma UK's interactive asthma map as part of the charity's Get it off your chest campaign The campaign highlights the real impact asthma has on lives across the UK and aims to show why the condition should be taken seriously.
On Wednesday 18 May Asthma UK will take these stories to Westminster to present to MPs. With the proposed changes to the NHS the charity wants to ensure MPs make asthma a priority and keep it on the agenda. People affected by asthma are being asked to add their voice now if they haven't already, and visit the website with the hope that the more stories that are shared the more people will listen.
Of the stories shared so far the overwhelming majority show that asthma isn't currently taken seriously enough and include nine heartbreaking accounts of children and adults who have tragically died from the condition in the words of the families affected.
Stories can be uploaded and tagged as 'angry', 'sad', 'happy', 'frustrating' and 'surprising'. Not all stories were negative, with a quarter opting to share a 'happy' story, however over a third of stories were selected as 'frustrating' with the standard of asthma care a common issue. 'Sad' stories shared included that of Claire O'Beirne from Buckinghamshire who lost her son to sudden onset asthma.
Claire shared this story: 'Our wonderful son died suddenly and most unexpectedly at the age of ten in early summer 2003. Like many other families, we were never made aware that this was even possible. And though he received standard asthma care, we feel that his health problems were never sufficiently well investigated, particularly the allergy side of things. His asthma and allergy were not taken seriously enough by medical caregivers and we are left grieving our little boy and feeling that more could have been done for him'.
Neil Churchill, Asthma UK Chief Executive says: 'Bringing these powerful stories of people's experiences to Westminster will hopefully demonstrate the life-changing impact asthma can have on people and influence MPs to make asthma a bigger priority in improving standards of care. We urge those who haven't yet posted their story on our asthma map to go online now, as they have a real opportunity to make sure MPs take asthma seriously and make sure asthma isn't lost amongst the changes to the NHS.'
Notes
1. Getitoffyourchest.asthma.org.uk has been live from 21 April 2011.
Source:
Asthma UK
On Wednesday 18 May Asthma UK will take these stories to Westminster to present to MPs. With the proposed changes to the NHS the charity wants to ensure MPs make asthma a priority and keep it on the agenda. People affected by asthma are being asked to add their voice now if they haven't already, and visit the website with the hope that the more stories that are shared the more people will listen.
Of the stories shared so far the overwhelming majority show that asthma isn't currently taken seriously enough and include nine heartbreaking accounts of children and adults who have tragically died from the condition in the words of the families affected.
Stories can be uploaded and tagged as 'angry', 'sad', 'happy', 'frustrating' and 'surprising'. Not all stories were negative, with a quarter opting to share a 'happy' story, however over a third of stories were selected as 'frustrating' with the standard of asthma care a common issue. 'Sad' stories shared included that of Claire O'Beirne from Buckinghamshire who lost her son to sudden onset asthma.
Claire shared this story: 'Our wonderful son died suddenly and most unexpectedly at the age of ten in early summer 2003. Like many other families, we were never made aware that this was even possible. And though he received standard asthma care, we feel that his health problems were never sufficiently well investigated, particularly the allergy side of things. His asthma and allergy were not taken seriously enough by medical caregivers and we are left grieving our little boy and feeling that more could have been done for him'.
Neil Churchill, Asthma UK Chief Executive says: 'Bringing these powerful stories of people's experiences to Westminster will hopefully demonstrate the life-changing impact asthma can have on people and influence MPs to make asthma a bigger priority in improving standards of care. We urge those who haven't yet posted their story on our asthma map to go online now, as they have a real opportunity to make sure MPs take asthma seriously and make sure asthma isn't lost amongst the changes to the NHS.'
Notes
1. Getitoffyourchest.asthma.org.uk has been live from 21 April 2011.
Source:
Asthma UK
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