To understand the cognitive level of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) disease management and pulmonary rehabilitation among medical staff in the respiratory departments and community of public health institutions in Panyu of Guangzhou, in order to assess the status of prevention and treatment of COPD in this area.

From March to October 2017, a questionnaire survey was conducted among 339 medical staff in Panyu, including respiratory doctors, nurses and therapists of four tertiary hospitals, five secondary hospitals, and three first-level hospitals, GPs, nurses and therapists at 16 community health service centres, among them, there are 147 respiratory and general practitioners (hereinafter referred to as doctors), 171 respiratory and general nurses (hereinafter collectively referred to as nurses), and 22 rehabilitation therapists (hereinafter collectively referred to as therapists). Using Epidata software to create questionnaire database entry data.

The awareness rate of COPD airflow limitation severity of nurses was only 19.9%, which was lower than that of doctors (39.7%) and therapists (22.7%). Doctors, nurses, and therapists are familiar with the low percentage of the GOLD guidelines, which are respectively only 12.3%, 7.6%, and 4.5%. Nurses were diagnosed with pulmonary function as a basis for COPD, and the awareness rate was only 60.2% lower than that of doctors (82.9%) and therapists (81.8%). In alleviating COPD patients′ shortness of breath, only 31.8% therapists chose short-acting beta-agonists, lower than doctors (61%) and nurses (45%). There is disagreement about the long-term use of inhaled corticosteroids in COPD. Medical staff have the highest awareness of lip-reducing and abdominal breathing, followed by Taiji and Ba Duan Jin exercises, and low awareness of modern rehabilitation programs such as elastic bands, upper and lower limb exercises. The effective pulmonary rehabilitation program should last at least 8 weeks, and the awareness rate of this therapy practice was 40.9%, higher than doctors (13.7%) and nurses (18.1%). Medical staff believe that the main factors affecting patient compliance are the cost of the drug and the patient′s lack of understanding of the benefits of the treatment. Additionally, 40.4% of doctors, 51.5% of nurses, and 54.5% of therapists believe that community health services cannot manage COPD. The reasons that affect community management of COPD, doctors believe that patient compliance and lack of man power, nurses believe that the main shortage of manpower and equipment, the therapist believes that the lack of medical awareness and poor patient compliance.

Doctors, nurses, and therapists have inconsistent understandings of COPD disease management and pulmonary rehabilitation, and each has its own focus. It is necessary to strengthen learning exchanges for each weak knowledge point. The awareness rate of modern rehabilitation exercise for pulmonary rehabilitation is not as high as that of traditional Chinese medicine. It is necessary to pay attention to the promotion of the benefits and significance of COPD pulmonary rehabilitation treatment and improve compliance.

Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive; Medical staff; Rehabilitation; Cognition; Cross-sectional studies