Home oxygen therapy is prescribed for some patients who have low oxygen in their blood and need more oxygen than is available from room air alone. Low blood oxygen may be due to a number of chronic, mainly respiratory, conditions the most common of which is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease or COPD.
In Scotland home oxygen can only be prescribed by an authorised prescriber from the hospital, usually a respiratory consultant although it can also be prescribed by a paediatrician, neurologist or cardiologist. GPs cannot prescribe oxygen therapy.