TY - JOUR T1 - News JF - Breathe JO - Breathe SP - 427 LP - 429 VL - 9 IS - 6 A2 - , Y1 - 2013/12/01 UR - http://breathe.ersjournals.com/content/9/6/427.abstract N2 - On September 6 and 7 2013, Barcelona played host to a public lung function testing event in the city centre to raise awareness about spirometry, lung health and smoking cessation. The 2-day event, situated in the central Plaça de la Universitat, saw over 1,500 members of the public have their lungs tested by healthcare professionals from CREAL and the Hospital del Mar. The event coincided with the European Respiratory Society (ERS) Annual Congress 2013 and was organised by the European Lung Foundation (ELF) and the ERS, in partnership with FC Barcelona, the European Commission (EC) and supported by the European COPD Coalition (ECC).The event was opened on Friday morning by Jordi Monés, Director of the Medical Team at FC Barcelona; Cristina Iniesta Blasco, Councillor of Health for Barcelona; Monica Fletcher, Chair of ELF; Francesco Blasi, President of the ERS; Joaquim Gea, Chair of the ERS Congress, and Judith Garcia- Aymerich, Co-Chair of the ERS Congress.To complete the grand opening, both Cristina Iniesta and Jordi Monés demonstrated a live spirometry test to the public and were the first people of the day to test their lung health.Members of the public were then invited to test their own lungs by blowing into a spirometer to measure their lung capacity. Each testing session took place in a private booth with a healthcare professional on hand to offer information and advice about the results. Whilst waiting for the test, people were able to watch videos and read material provided in English, Catalan and Spanish, helping to raise awareness of the importance of lung health.Patient organisations from across Spain were onsite throughout the event to offer guidance and information about lung health. … ER -