Strengths and limitations
chronic breathlessness, ’
RECRUITMENT
To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to report usual care through the experiences of patients with chronic breathlessness awaiting a diagnosis, alongside the experiences of clinicians managing the diagnostic process. Thirty-four patients were interviewed, providing a sufficient sample size for data analysis.The ethnicity of most patients was White British, which is not representative of the diverse local population. Opportunistic recruitment at the point of consultation with the GP was used for the study and either adults from other ethnic backgrounds declined to have their details passed on to the study team or were not invited by their GP. Of the participants identified, two were excluded because they had insufficient understanding of English, therefore interpretation should be offered for future studies. The number of clinician interviews was limited as a result of pressures in primary care during the COVID-19 pandemic. One clinician from each of the GP practices in the study was interviewed, but their views may not be representative. The sampling for clinician interviews was mostly opportunistic, possibly introducing positive responder bias. It is not possible to exclude that being involved in the wider Breathe DEEP trial may have influenced patients’ and clinicians’ experiences.