Background. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a debilitating lung condition characterised by progressive lung function limitation. COPD is an umbrella term and encompasses a spectrum of pathophysiologies including chronic bronchitis, small airways disease and emphysema. COPD caused an estimated 3 million deaths worldwide in 2016, and is estimated to be the third leading cause of death worldwide. The British Lung Foundation (BLF) estimates that the disease costs the NHS around £1.9 billion per year. COPD is therefore a significant public health challenge. This dataset explores the impact of hospitalisation in patients with COPD during the COVID pandemic.

PIONEER geography The West Midlands (WM) has a population of 5.9 million & includes a diverse ethnic & socio-economic mix. There is a higher than average percentage of minority ethnic groups. WM has a large number of elderly residents but is the youngest population in the UK. There are particularly high rates of physical inactivity, obesity, smoking & diabetes. The West Midlands has a high prevalence of COPD, reflecting the high rates of smoking and industrial exposure. Each day >100,000 people are treated in hospital, see their GP or are cared for by the NHS.

EHR. University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHB) is one of the largest NHS Trusts in England, providing direct acute services & specialist care across four hospital sites, with 2.2 million patient episodes per year, 2750 beds & 100 ITU beds. UHB runs a fully electronic healthcare record (EHR) (PICS; Birmingham Systems), a shared primary & secondary care record (Your Care Connected) & a patient portal “My Health”.

Scope: All hospitalised patients admitted to UHB during the COVID-19 pandemic first wave, curated to focus on COPD. Longitudinal & individually linked, so that the preceding & subsequent health journey can be mapped & healthcare utilisation prior to & after admission understood. The dataset includes ICD-10 & SNOMED-CT codes pertaining to COPD and COPD exacerbations, as well as all co-morbid conditions. Serial, structured data pertaining to process of care (timings, staff grades, specialty review, wards), presenting complaint, all physiology readings (pulse, blood pressure, respiratory rate, oxygen saturations), all blood results, microbiology, all prescribed & administered treatments (fluids, nebulisers, antibiotics, inotropes, vasopressors, organ support), all outcomes. Linked images available (radiographs, CT).

Available supplementary data: More extensive data including wave 2 patients in non-OMOP form. Ambulance, 111, 999 data, synthetic data.

Available supplementary support: Analytics, Model build, validation & refinement; A.I.; Data partner support for ETL (extract, transform & load) process, Clinical expertise, Patient & end-user access, Purchaser access, Regulatory requirements, Data-driven trials, “fast screen” services.