Bridging Gaps in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) through Advancing Awareness and Education - The American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) seeks to implement the Bridging Gaps in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) through Advancing Awareness and Education project. Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) is recognized as a serious, chronic disease that affects tissue surrounding the alveoli in the lungs. The disease develops when lung tissue becomes thick, inflamed, and stiff for unknown reasons, which over time leads to permanent scarring of the lungs making it progressively difficult to breathe and negatively impacts quality of life. Estimated prevalence of IPF worldwide is 13 to 20 per 100,000. About 100,000 are affected in the United States, with 30,000-40,000 new cases diagnosed each year. The majority of patients who are ultimately diagnosed with IPF are being cared for in community-based settings where disease expertise is limited among healthcare providers (HCPs). Many of these patients typically experience substantial delays in diagnosis where they frequently undergo extensive treatment for other, more commonly occurring conditions. By the time many of these patients are correctly diagnosed, their IPF has progressed to a severe stage with more limited treatment options. CHEST is currently observing promising results from an initiative it launched in 2022, Bridging Specialties™, aimed at shortening the time to diagnosis for IPF as well as the larger class of intestinal lung disease (ILD). The principles of the initiative are bridging primary care to specialty care to improve outcomes through educational tools that support suspicion, symptom recognition, and subsequent referral to mitigate diagnostic delays and optimize outcomes. The initiative has made inroads promoting awareness about ILD, including IPF, to HCPs with a focus on primary care and community pulmonologists. The proposed CDC-funded project will focus specifically on IPF, a single disease state not currently supported by CDC and distinct from other chronic lung conditions. The project will also expand focus from developing resources and messaging for an audience of primary care and pulmonary care physicians to a larger audience that includes public health (PH), and the general population through strategic partners with patient advocacy and public health organizations. Specifically, the proposed project will build a knowledge base on the current IPF landscape through initiation of a landscape scan, use findings from the landscape scan to identify gaps, develop survey tools to gain insights from diverse target audiences, create and disseminate educational and awareness assets through strategic partnerships with tailored messaging to improve outcomes. Special consideration will be directed towards patients from rural settings lacking healthcare access, patients vulnerable to environmental risk factors, and black Americans—all whom experience greater likelihood for poor prognosis and premature mortality.
