Two thirds of deaths from asthma attacks in Scotland are preventable, according to charity

A charity is calling for yearly reviews into the way the NHS treats asthma to ensure patients are properly monitored

Asthma UK claims two-third of the 500 deaths from the condition in Scotland over the last five years were preventable.

Research suggests 60% of asthma patients are not received the correct care, recommended by national guidelines.

Anthony Fagg, 53, lost his 12-year-old son Tony to a fatal asthma attack in April 2013.

He said, "I will never forget the day that Tony passed away.

Only a couple of hours earlier I was wishing him goodnight and saying ‘I love you’ then at midnight I got a call from my eldest son saying Tony had been blue-lighted to hospital.

"Just four hours later he was pronounced dead as doctors had been unable to revive him. It completely tore me apart.

"Tony wasn’t given basic asthma care such as an inhaler check to ensure his medicine reached his lungs properly or an asthma action plan that told us what medicines he was taking and how to stay well.

Kay Boycott, Chief Executive of Asthma UK, said: “It is absolutely appalling that hundreds of people with asthma in Scotland are still needlessly dying from asthma attacks.

“It’s been five years since the National Review of Asthma Deaths found that two-thirds of deaths from asthma attacks could have been prevented with basic care yet we are still seeing tragic cases of lives being cut short.

"The same mistakes are being made again and again because essential recommendations have been ignored. This is not good enough."