Finalist
Cardiopulmonary Risk: Uniting Cardiology and Respiratory Care
Summary of work
This cross-specialty initiative has established cardiopulmonary risk management as a new standard of care for patients with COPD across the UK. Addressing a critical and under-recognised gap affecting over 1.2 million people, the programme united respiratory and cardiology experts to tackle the absence of structured cardiovascular risk assessment in COPD.
What set this work apart was its truly collaborative approach. A multidisciplinary taskforce co-created a shared clinical framework, underpinned by robust evidence and formal consensus, overcoming longstanding silos between specialties. This partnership-driven model ensured both clinical credibility and real-world relevance, increasing acceptance and adoption across the healthcare system.
Innovation lay not only in introducing the concept of ‘COPD-driven cardiopulmonary risk’, but in translating it into a simple, one-page tool designed for routine use. Crucially, the strategy moved beyond education to achieve system-level change, with endorsement from leading UK organisations and adoption across multiple Integrated Care Boards serving >3 million people.
By combining evidence generation, consensus-building and system integration, the programme has shifted clinical practice from reactive respiratory management to proactive cardiopulmonary risk reduction. It stands out as a scalable model of healthcare partnership that delivers meaningful change and has the potential to reduce preventable morbidity and mortality at population level.
Judges’ comments
The judges liked the way that the entry from Lucid Group and AstraZeneca was approached. It was very practical and it was good to see that the implementations had been nicely organised. A strong entry.
