Hi audreyhipsley and thanks for your questions. My thinking is it's best to keep yourself close by and remain available should he need anything. He's got to get through the coughing spell on his own. If the cause of the coughing spell can be determined, and that cause can be avoided or prevented, that might keep the number of episodes down. While others may offer their own suggestions I thought you might benefit from looking over these three articles:
First, this one on persistent cough:https://copd.net/symptoms/persistent-cough/.
Second, this one on 'not just a cough':https://copd.net/living/not-just-cough/.
Third, this one on managing a cough: https://copd.net/stories/managing-cough-copd/.
You may find something is any one of these article to be helpful for you and your boyfriend.
All the best,
Leon (site moderator0