Meet the Team – Alison Armstrong

Meet Alison Armstrong, Chair and member of the Steering Group, HMViP

I have worked within the Assisted Ventilation Service for more than 20 years. Alongside a specialist multi-disciplinary team, I am involved in the coordination and delivery of care to a region-wide caseload of patients who require Home Mechanical Ventilation (HMV) in the community setting.

My duties include the assessment and treatment of patients with long-term ventilation or airway clearance requirements; Nurse led ventilation and flight assessment clinics, including the development of local practice; non-medical prescribing; facilitating discharge of patients with complex healthcare needs or receiving tracheostomy ventilation; clinical management of the specialist team including staff support, training and supervision; research, audit and service improvement; development of educational resources; hosting local and national educational study days and events.

I have experience in working with other stakeholders in terms of education and support. I am a nurse representative on the British Thoracic Society Education and Training Committee. I am also proud to have been the host of a national long-term ventilation network for the last 16 years (Specialists in Long-term Ventilation at Home – SiLVaH).

What is your interest in HMV?
My interest in HMV and my drive to support the delivery of education within this area of practice has existed for many years. I initiated the development of competency frameworks for use locally more than a decade ago, which ensure appropriate standards of training for patients and caregivers. In 2015, I was involved in the development of the medical home ventilation competency-based curriculum for the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, which is now formally adopted by the GMC.

Subsequent to this, I led a further iteration of this curriculum to produce an educational framework for use with non-medical health care professionals working in the field of home mechanical ventilation. I hope that my contribution to the HMViP collaboration will further enhance the care of
patients who use HMV.

Following more than 20 years of working within this speciality, I consider myself to be a clinical expert in this field of practice. Recognising and balancing the risk versus benefit of living outside of the hospital setting with complex health care needs, my goal is in assuring good life quality for this
complex patient group and I possess determined and enthusiastic ideas about the future of home mechanical ventilation and my contribution to that.

When did you join the HMViP?
2020

What do you personally hope to see the group achieve?
I hope that the resources developed by the group will continue to evolve and that the information will reach out to all those who would benefit.
Ultimately, the goal is to enhance the care of patients who are considering or using HMV. This resource will hopefully provide appropriate information and support to patients, carers and clinical teams, to ensure that treatment choice is fully informed, and the highest standards of care are provided.