Celia Gutiérrez Villegas, a nurse from the IDIVAL nursing research group and the Primary Care Management of the Cantabrian Health Service, has been awarded second prize in the Community and Social Sphere category of the 4th Research Awards of the General Nursing Council (CGE). Her project, entitled Analysis of the costs of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in Cantabria, will receive 8,000 euros for its development.
These awards, which in their fourth edition have received 156 candidatures, seek to encourage and motivate nursing professionals in the preparation and development of research projects, as well as to make visible the impact of the profession on health outcomes.
The study led by Celia Gutiérrez Villegas aims to estimate the magnitude of the impact of COPD in Cantabria from a health and social perspective. It proposes to calculate the direct health cost of the disease and its exacerbations, analysing its evolution before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the socio-demographic profile of patients and their informal carers will be studied, assessing their quality of life.
This research project is part of Celia Gutiérrez Villegas’ doctoral thesis in the Doctoral Programme in Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Cantabria (EDUC). Her work is supervised by professors Manuel Herrero Montes and María Paz Zulueta, both from the Department of Nursing at the University of Cantabria.In addition, the study has the collaboration of a multidisciplinary team that includes Carlos Amado Diago, a pulmonologist at the Marqués de Valdecilla University Hospital, and Andrea Marcela Aceros Lora, a nurse and epidemiologist at the University Hospital of Santander (Colombia).
Clinical, health care and social impact
Studies on the cost of diseases make it possible to quantify their economic and social impact, facilitating decision-making in healthcare management. In the case of chronic pathologies such as COPD, knowing their economic burden is essential for designing strategies for prevention, health promotion and care protocols that optimise patient care.
From the nursing point of view, research in this field contributes to improving the quality of life of patients and their families, facilitating the work of healthcare professionals and strengthening coordination between primary and specialised care.
The work carried out by the IDIVAL nursing research group, with projects such as that of Gutiérrez Villegas, provides key information for the sustainability of the health system, promoting an efficient use of resources and guaranteeing equitable and quality care for people affected by COPD.
