Nuffield Health comments on NICE recommendations for exercise in Cystic Fibrosis

According to the guidance, exercise programmes should be developed on an individual patient basis with the support of physiotherapy teams that specialise in CF who are able to provide regular monitoring and support. This enables exercise to complement existing airway clearance techniques and treatment regimens, to maximise and support adherence.

These recommendations align with Nuffield Health’s experience in providing exercise programmes for children and young people with CF. The programme began as a pilot in 2011 with Great Ormond Street Hospital, and has since expanded to Leeds Teaching Hospital, Royal Brompton Hospital, Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust and the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital Trust.

By taking part, NHS hospitals can refer their young CF patients to one of our fitness and well-being centres for exercise and training. We provide the patient with free Nuffield Health gym membership and one-to-one personal training sessions.

We know there is no “one size fits all” approach if the long-term aim is to keep people engaged in an active lifestyle. So our CIMSPA accredited personal trainers work with the hospital physiotherapists and the patient to develop programmes that the patient enjoys and will be beneficial. All of our personal trainers who provide the one-to-one coaching sessions undertake further specialist training to work with the young patients.

In addition, every fitness and wellbeing club that the patients visit adhere to additional enhanced cleanliness standards; due to the greater risk of respiratory infections among children with CF. We have developed special protocols to minimize any infection risk – in keeping with the NICE recommendations.

Personalised exercise intervention was estimated to have saved around £7,000 per patient per year at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), when combined with standard physio care and dietetic advice.¹

For more information on our CF exercise programme and how we are working to help CF patients visit our CF pages.

¹Ledger, S. J., Owen, E., Prasad, S. A., Goldman, A., Willams, J. & Aurora, P. (2013) A pilot outreach physiotherapy and dietetic quality improvement initiative reduces IV antibiotic requirements in children with moderate-severe cystic fibrosis. J Cyst Fibros, 12(6), 766-72.

Last updated Friday 3 November 2017

First published on Thursday 26 October 2017