IMPRESS
Improving and Integrating Respiratory Services in the NHS
(Thinking strategically: Implementing locally).

IMPRESS was set up in October 2006 as a joint BTS and PCRS-UK (then GPIAG) joint working party with the remit of
"Providing the clinical leadership required to drive improvements in care across /beyond the traditional boundaries of primary care and secondary care  to achieve high quality integrated patient centred care for the population with or at risk of respiratory  disease."

IMPRESS in its first 4 years has:

• Established and maintained a comprehensive website, containing  as a clinician or commissioner ‘all you need to know to commission or provide high quality patient-centred services, integrated between primary and secondary care’ and attracting circa 400 visits per week
• Generated a range of resources and publications all freely available through the IMPRESS website (http://www.impressresp.com/)
• Provided a model both for the respiratory  community locally and other disease areas for how primary care  and secondary care  can interact and come together to deliver integrated services
• Enabled the BTS and PCRS-UK to reach out and establish relationships with bodies key to the commissioning process and to influence on a range of topics that neither Society on its own would have done
• Built a reputation for itself as an independent voice representing the combined view of primary care  and secondary care  on key issues related to integrated care

Our Aims
BTS and PCRS-UK both have a passion to improve services for patients with respiratory disease.  The aims of IMPRESS are to provide leadership, advice and support to our members to help them engage with the changing NHS and to find ways to direct and provide high quality integrated care for people with respiratory disease in local settings.  

Scope of IMPRESS 2011 onwards
Principle area of work:
Commissioning

Target audience:         
Commissioners and providers

Disease area:             
Respiratory, with a focus on long term conditions such as COPD, asthma and sleep apnoea

Geographical area:    
The focus continues to be on the NHS in England on the grounds this is the majority of the UK population and the nation with the greatest change and need for guidance.   IMPRESS however needs to learn from the work of the other 3 nations. Equally, much of the work of IMPRESS is applicable to or can be readily adapted to all 4 UK nations

How we are organised
The organisations have formed a joint structure to develop a range of activities which will deliver this agenda.  This model of working together across traditional health care boundaries is new and exciting and we will be inclusive in our approach, involving patient, lay, management and other constituencies in our work.

Members of the Implementation Group from January 2011 are:-

BTS
Co Chair:  Professor Tony Davison (to be succeeded by Dr Mike Ward from  1 April 2011)
Representatives:
Dr Louise Restrick
Jane Scullion
Dr John Williams
 
PCRS-UK
Co Chair: Dr Steve Holmes
Representatives:
Dr Noel Baxter
Dr Stephen Gaduzo
Sandy Walmsley
 

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History of IMPRESS
Download founding document  here