Welcome to the Oxygen section of the website.
Home Oxygen Therapy: Respiratory Conditions
The BOC Home Oxygen Service currently provides home oxygen therapy to patients diagnosed with a long-term respiratory condition and registered with a GP in west Suffolk. Oxygen therapy may be beneficial for patients with the following conditions, all of which are listed on the Home Oxygen Order Form (HOOF):
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1. Making a referral for assessment
Patients should be assessed for the suitability of home oxygen therapy by the West Suffolk COPD & Home Oxygen Service, which is provided by West Suffolk Hospital.
Patients with a long-term respiratory condition should be referred for assessment and initiation of home oxygen therapy via the Care Co-Ordination Centre (CCC).
Please contact the CCC by email or telephone to request an electronic referral form:
suffolkcommunityhealthcare.referrals@nhs.net or 0300 123 2425
***Please be aware that this service is unable to provide assessments or prescribe oxygen for non-respiratory patients.***
2. BOC Home Oxygen Portal
Healthcare professionals (HCPs) need to register to use the portal: BOC Home Oxygen Portal (bochealthcare.co.uk)
The portal enables HCPs to:
- Submit HOOFs online.
- Review previous HOOFs submitted.
- Check patient prescription information such as flow and hours of use.
- Check what equipment and cylinders a patient holds.
- Review a patient’s compliance with their prescription.
- See any safety concerns, either current or historic.
Registrations are processed the same day and the HCP will receive email confirmation when they are able to access the portal.
The HCP will be given access to either Part A or Part B online ordering forms based on their profession.
3. Ordering home oxygen from BOC
GPs, specialist nurses, matrons and palliative care nurses may order oxygen for a patient.
For immediate home oxygen before specialist assessment, the Home Oxygen Risk Mitigation (IHORM) and Home Oxygen Consent Form (HOCF) must be completed:
IHORM form_tcm1109-421574.pdf (bochomeoxygen.co.uk)
All HOOFs need to be submitted via the BOC Home Oxygen Portal. Additional guidance is available here:
How to complete a HOOF | BOC Home Oxygen Service
BOC Delivery and Installation Services
***IMPORTANT NOTE***
Urgent supply requests (4-hour HOOF) should be reserved for emergencies.
There is a next working day delivery service available.
Please ensure that the most appropriate service is selected.
Home Oxygen Therapy: Palliative Care and Cluster Headache
1. Good HOOF (Part A) guide for Primary Care and Out of Hours teams Nov 2020 Update:
This guide will support non specialist teams who need to order home oxygen for palliative and cluster headache patients (normally following a consultant recommendation and not already under the care of a Home Oxygen Assessment and Review [HOS-AR] team):
good-hoof-guide-for-primary-care-and-out-of-hours-teams-nov-2020.pdf (england.nhs.uk)
2. The East of England Priorities Advisory Committee Guidance Statement: Oxygen in Cluster Headaches:
Oxygen in cluster headaches (prescqipp.info)
Home Oxygen Therapy: Safety Considerations
1. Care/Nursing Homes – Storage and use of oxygen
Care/Nursing Home Charter – HOS – provided by BOC
2. Smoking
SNEE Policy for Prescribing Home Oxygen to Patients Known to Smoke
Patients or carers who are smokers should link in with local smoking cessation services.
A patient leaflet about the dangers of smoking with oxygen is available from BOC here:
3. Paraffin based skin products
Paraffin based skin products present a fire hazard. A patient leaflet is available from BOC here:
NHS FIRE HAZARD DL:NHS FIRE HAZARD DL (bochomeoxygen.co.uk)
4. Slips, Trips and Falls
Patients who are at high risk of trips and falls also need special consideration when considering oxygen therapy.
Awareness and safety training videos for patients are available from BOC here:
Advice and Support | BOC Home Oxygen Service
For concerns about the safety of a patient using oxygen – which may relate to fire risk or clutter – please use the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service online form to request a Safer Home Visit where eligible:
Check if you’re eligible for a safer home visit | Suffolk County Council
There are also further leaflets relating to fire safety available on the Suffolk Fire and Rescue service website:
Fire safety information leaflets | Suffolk County Council
Home Oxygen Therapy: Withdrawal of
If a patient no longer meets the criteria for home oxygen therapy, the prescriber must:
- Explain this to the patient.
- Stop supplying oxygen to the patient by submitting a removal request via the BOC portal.
- Review other prescribed treatments.
If a patient continues to meet the criteria for home oxygen therapy but isn’t using the oxygen as prescribed, the clinician should:
- Give advice and support on the benefits of the therapy.
- Encourage the patient to increase usage to the recommended level.
In some circumstances, it may be appropriate to withhold or withdraw oxygen because of public safety and risk to others. In this instance, a Multi-disciplinary Team (MDT) meeting should be organised.
Related information
Coronavirus » Home oxygen order form (HOOF) letters and guidance (england.nhs.uk)
For any enquiries, please contact us.
