Respiratory medicine

Respiratory medicine involves the care of patients with all forms of respiratory disease. The specialty is interesting, wide and diverse. Respiratory specialists deal with over 30 different conditions, some very common and some rare. Care is given by multidisciplinary respiratory teams involving doctors, specialist respiratory nurses, community respiratory teams, respiratory physiotherapists and specialist respiratory technicians as well as other medical staff.

Some respiratory units are highly specialised and provide regional services, for example lung transplant, sleep-related medical problems and adult cystic fibrosis units, while in the majority of units a large proportion of the workload is acute respiratory and general medicine. Lung conditions account for about a third of emergency admissions. All respiratory trainees have to undergo intensive care training and many individuals now look for jobs that involve both critical care and respiratory work.

There are close links between the specialty and radiology, infectious diseases specialists and thoracic surgery.  The specialist society (British Thoracic Society) has also developed very strong links with colleagues in primary care and has been very active in promoting best practise in the development of integrated respiratory care in the community.

Related RCP publications

• Passive smoking and children (2010)
• Consultant physicians working with patients, fourth edition (2008)
• Non-invasive ventilation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: management of acute type 2 respiratory failure (2008)
• Ending tobacco smoking in Britain: radical strategies for prevention and harm reduction in nicotine addiction (2008)
• Harm reduction in nicotine addiction: helping people who can’t quit (2007)
• Going smoke free: the medical case for clean air in the home, at work and in public places (2005)
• Nicotine addiction in Britain (2000)
• Measuring clinical outcome in asthma: a patient-focused approach (1999)

Map of Medicine

The RCP has been working with Map of Medicine since 2008 to produce web-based knowledge support tools. There are 300 evidence-based clinical care maps covering all major areas of healthcare; including care maps for specific specialties.

Specialty training

For information about specialty training in respiratory medicine, go to the Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Postgraduate Training Board (JRCPTB) website.

Specialist society

• British Thoracic Society 

2010 Consultant Census

The RCP has completed our census of working physicians in 2010. Attached below is a breakdown of the report with results for this specialty.

 Patient information websites

• Asthma UK
• British Lung Foundation