By Sandra Zunino
When the simple act of drawing breath is no longer so simple, Shore Health System’s Better Breathers support group may have some answers.
The Shore Health System Center for Cardiopulmonary Fitness and Wellness will be hosting a Better Breathers support group meeting on Tuesday, November 9 at 2:00 p.m. at the Freeman Memorial Hospital in Easton at the Outpatient Center Conference Room, and on Wednesday, November 10 at 5:30 p.m. in the Solarium at Dorchester General Hospital. The topic will be Managing Your Lung Disease.
Better Breathers support groups exist throughout the United States with the purpose of helping people meet the daily challenges of living with chronic lung disease as well as provide an opportunity for lung disease patients, their families and caregivers to learn about the condition from health care professionals. Shore Health System has been hosting Better Breathers support groups for almost four years.
Most of the participants are already in the pulmonary rehabilitation program at Memorial and Dorchester General Hospitals and suffer from conditions such chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, asthma, chronic bronchitis, pulmonary fibrosis, and pulmonary hypertension. Facilitated by Melissa Eigenbrode, a registered nurse and registered respiratory therapists, meetings may also feature guest speakers including current pulmonary rehab patients.
The goal of the pulmonary rehabilitation program is to halt the progression of chronic lung diseases and provide a better quality of life for patients diagnosed with such diseases, according to Sally Worm, program manager for the cardio-pulmonary fitness and wellness program at Shore Health System.
Lung disease patients may be referred to the program after experiencing trouble with stamina or experiencing shortness of breath with any type of exertion. “The hope is that regular exercise and education will help to make performing their activities of daily living easier,” says Sally.
Those in the program may also reduce the need for hospital visits. “We see these patients three times a week,” says Sally, “so staff acts in conjunction with the referring physician as a case manager.”
Support group subjects might cover how diseases affect the lungs, the challenges of using supplemental oxygen, new medications that are available, other treatment options and new surgical procedures such as lung-reduction surgery that can increase a patient’s lung capacity.
Caregivers and family members might also learn tips to help patients conserve their energy throughout daily activities such as providing a shower chair and hand-held nozzles for bathing, arranging seating around the home so patients can rest while moving about their living quarters, and how to avoid triggers such as dust, pollens, secondary tobacco smoke and perfumes that might exacerbate a lung condition. “Some of these are simple ideas someone without asthma or lung disease might not think about,” says Sally.
The support group meetings are free and open to the public; however, space is limited so participants are asked to call and register in advance. “If the number of attendees exceeds our space, we will try to locate another room to accommodate all those who are interested,” says Sally.
Memorial Hospital is located at 219 S. Washington Street, Easton. Dorchester General Hospital is located at 300 Byrn Street in Cambridge. To register for the Better Breathers support group meeting, please call Memorial Hospital at 822-1000 ext. 8201; or 410-228-5511, ext 8201 for Dorchester Memorial. For more information about Shore Health System, visit www.shorehealth.org.