Department of Pulmonary Diseases/Department of Intensive Care Medicine and Home Mechanical Ventilation, Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Corresponding author at: Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam, Department of Home Mechanical Ventilation, the Netherlands.
A. Hazenberg
Department of Pulmonary Diseases/Home Mechanical Ventilation, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands; Groningen Research Institute for Asthma and COPD (GRIAC), University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands
N.A.M. Cobben
Department of Pulmonary Diseases/Home Mechanical Ventilation, University Medical Center Maastricht, the Netherlands
D.A.M.P.J. Gommers
Department of Pulmonary Diseases/Department of Intensive Care Medicine and Home Mechanical Ventilation, Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam, the Netherlands
M.A. Gaytant
Department of Pulmonary Diseases/Home Mechanical Ventilation, University Medical Center Utrecht, the Netherlands
P.J. Wijkstra
Department of Pulmonary Diseases/Home Mechanical Ventilation, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands; Groningen Research Institute for Asthma and COPD (GRIAC), University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands
In the Netherlands we have an unique organisation of only 4 centres being responsible for all patients who need Home Mechanical ventilation(HMV). Nationwide criteria for referral and initiation of HMV are stated in our national guideline and recently a unique national learning management system (LMS) for all caregivers and professionals was developed. A nationwide multi-centric research program is running and every centre is participating. In this paper we provide information about the evolution of HMV in the Netherlands during the last 30 years, including details about the number of patients, different diagnose groups, residence and the type of ventilators.
