TY - JOUR T1 - Bringing the patient voice to the ERS Annual Congress JF - Breathe JO - breathe SP - 91 LP - 94 DO - 10.1183/20734735.100011 VL - 8 IS - 2 AU - M. Fletcher Y1 - 2011/12/01 UR - http://breathe.ersjournals.com/content/8/2/91.abstract N2 - It gives me great pleasure that I can write this editorial for Breathe to explain some fantastic progress made this year by the European Lung Foundation (ELF) and its growing family of patient organisations at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) Annual Congress. However, the first question I may need to answer for the readers of Breathe is – why? Why invite patient organisations to take part in the Congress, when its primary focus and goal is surely to meet the needs of >20,000 respiratory professionals who come to share the latest research and clinical developments with their colleagues? The first answer is: the Congress is all because of and for the patient. Any developments in science and clinical care in respiratory medicine are to improve the quality of life of those living with respiratory disease. Therefore, engaging patients and their organisations in the Congress allows them to hear about and report back to their communities the work being done by ERS members and Congress attendees. This is of course aided by the ELF, which reports daily to the media about key abstracts and hot findings during the Congress, and also has a regular presence on social media explaining to the public what new findings might mean to them and their … ER -