CHEST & AAHomecare Release Oxygen Toolkit

WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 1, 2021)—The American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) and The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) are releasing an Oxygen Toolkit supporting individuals who require supplemental oxygen and clinicians who prescribe supplemental oxygen to their patients.

Featured on the Oxygen Therapy pages of the CHEST Foundation website, the toolkit includes four components:

Complete Oxygen Therapy Guide 
An all-encompassing guide, this document provides the basic information about oxygen therapy, including the benefits of oxygen therapy, a look into the different systems and a guide for paying for oxygen therapy. Find it here.

Getting Started 
This concise guide covers what to do before, during and after delivery of the equipment focusing on the relationship between patient and durable medical equipment supplier (DME). Find it here.

Trip Planning Guide: Traveling With Oxygen Therapy  
Traveling with new medical equipment can be a stressful situation. This document provides everything someone traveling with supplemental oxygen would need to know for traveling by car, bus, train, cruise ship and plane. Find it here.

Does Your Patient Need Oxygen Therapy? 
Written for clinicians, this document covers determining whether your patient needs oxygen therapy, how to order oxygen therapy systems and how to educate a patient on oxygen therapy. Find it here.

“We’re excited to collaborate with the CHEST Foundation to educate patients with lung disease about oxygen therapy,” said Tom Ryan, AAHomecare president and CEO. “Better-informed patients and caregivers will allow suppliers to more effectively support individuals who depend on home oxygen. These new guides are a terrific resource that will help patients and caregivers understand and confidently utilize these essential devices in their homes and when they travel.”

“Driven by our commitment to make an impact on the quality of life of patients, the CHEST Foundation creates quality resources such as the Oxygen Toolkit for people who are grappling with navigating their day to day while managing their disease,” says CHEST Foundation President Ian Nathanson, MD, FCCP. “Equally, we recognize that there are knowledge gaps of our own membership—writing a prescription that meets reimbursement criteria—and are committed to eliminating all the barriers patients face.”

 
“This toolkit represents one strategy in our broader commitment to enabling the use of supplemental oxygen by all patients who can benefit,” said CHEST CEO Robert Musacchio, PhD. “CHEST is actively working with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to expand access. We recently helped compel expansion by advocating for changes in the National Coverage Determination for Home Oxygen and, through our Health Policy & Advocacy Committee, are actively exploring additional regulatory strategies for enabling broader access to high-flow devices and liquid oxygen.”

Visit chestnet.org and aahomecare.org for more information.