Laura Feemster receives 2022 Solovy Award for Advancement in COPD

Dr. Laura Feemster, associate professor (Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine) was awarded the Respiratory Health Association’s 2022 Solovy Award for Advancement in COPD.

Established in 2016, this annual award recognizes individuals who have made significant research contributions to improving the lives of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The award includes $20,000 of research funds.

“I am deeply humbled and honored to join such a distinguished group of prior awardees, whose notable accomplishments in advancing healthcare for patients living with COPD demonstrates the significance of this award,” Feemster noted. “To accept this honor is truly a highlight of my professional career and I look forward to continuing to help positively impact the lives of people living with COPD and their loved ones.”

Dr. Feemster’s work in COPD focuses on improving health care delivery to patients with COPD – including increasing the use of evidence-based treatments, but also in reducing the use of treatments that are not beneficial and sometimes even harmful.

“Many people living with COPD have severe shortness of breath that limits what they are able to do, or they suffer from frequent flare-ups that lead to hospitalization,” continued Feemster. “While medications and therapies are available that can help improve quality of life and decrease these flare-ups, COPD patients often do not receive these important therapies or receive the wrong therapies. Identifying these gaps and developing interventions to improve the quality of COPD care has the potential to greatly improve the daily lives of the millions of people living with COPD.”