This article describes how an existing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease outreach service, which manages patients at home and attempts to avoid inappropriate hospital admission, could be improved by implementing an early supported discharge scheme as a collaborative effort between primary and secondary care. Consideration is given to the practicalities of successfully implementing this development using a model devised by Post (1989a, 1989b) as a framework on which to build a systematic approach. It is hypothesised that implementing such a change would provide patient-centred care and increased patient choice, as well as relieving pressures in the acute hospital sector.