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T A K E A
D E E P
B R E A T H
Learn more about
Dr. Scoggins and North
Idaho Lung, Asthma
and Critical Care at
niladocs.comor by
calling
(208) 765-1252
.
Learn more about
Kootenai Health and
Mayo Clinic Care
Network at
KH.org/mayo.
By Andrea Nagel
Patients with
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD) can breathe a little easier knowing some of the
top pulmonologists in the country are collaborating and
discussing best practices and hospital readmission rates
for COPD. Among them was Robert Scoggins, M.D., with
North Idaho Lung, Asthma and Critical Care.
“Mayo Clinic created a collaborative event and invited
Kootenai Health to attend as part of their membership
in the Mayo Clinic Care Network,” Dr. Scoggins said.
“Patients with COPD are chronically ill, and because of
that, hospital readmission rates among that population
are high. This program can help prevent a lot of those
readmissions.”
W O R K I N G T O G E T H E R
Over the course of two days, attendees discussed com-
mon treatments, best practices, proper follow-up with
patients and their primary care physicians, educating
patients about their medications, and ways to standard-
ize protocols.
“The goal was to develop a team of physicians to
be involved with creating these protocols and figuring
out the best way to track the results,” Dr. Scoggins
said. “Tracking the results will allow us to adapt our
treatments and care practices to better serve our
Collaborating on COPD
COPD patients.”
Because the Coeur d’Alene
area is a popular retirement
community, Kootenai Health
provides care for a large
COPD patient population.
T H E B E S T
T H E Y C A N G E T
“We have a fairly large group
of COPD patients, and our
goal is to keep them out
of the hospital and at home as much as possible,”
Dr. Scoggins said. “This is definitely something our
group wants to be involved in.”
Because patients with COPD are at a higher risk of
developing other chronic health issues, such as heart
disease and lung cancer, Dr. Scoggins believes proper
management and education will be crucial in prevent-
ing hospital readmission.
“It’s a good thing for our community to develop a
program that serves our COPD patients,” Dr. Scoggins
said. “They deserve the best care they can get, and one
way they can get that is through this collaboration with
Mayo Clinic. It’s one of the best hospitals in the world.”
P H Y S I C I A N S F R O M A C R O S S T H E C O U N T R Y M E T T O
D I S C U S S B E S T C A R E P R A C T I C E S AT M AY O C L I N I C
Robert Scoggins, M.D.
North Idaho Lung, Asthma
and Critical Care
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