DIABETES


AS A NEW dIABEtES NEtWoRK foR NoRthERN IRElANd IS EStABlIShEd, PIf looKS At thE INNovAtIvE WoRK BEINg doNE IN thIS AREA BY INtEgRAtEd cARE PARtNERShIPS…


dIABEtES PAtIENtS BENEfIt fRom ‘JoINEd-UP’ cARE


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ver 88,000 people in the north of Ireland are living with diabetes and this figure


rises annually by more than 3,000 due to our ageing and growing population. It is estimated that around 12,000 are also people living with type 2 diabetes and have not yet been diagnosed.


Now, a diabetes Network has been set up following the recent launch of the new Strategic framework for diabetes: part of a series of initiatives to support ‘health and Well-being 2026, delivering together’ which aims to transform health and Social care (hSc) services across the north.


the Network will be led by the health and Social care Board (hScB) in partnership with the Public health Agency and diabetes UK Northern Ireland.


‘I am delighted to announce the launch of this new Network which will enable people living with diabetes and frontline experts in diabetes care to ‘co-design’ services with the aim of making a real difference to future diabetes care and improvements in long-term health for people living with the condition,’ said Sophie


12 - PhARmAcY IN focUS


lusby, commissioning lead at the health & Social care Board explained at the launch.


‘the vision of the Network is to lead the improvement of care for all people living with all types of diabetes and those at risk of developing diabetes in Northern Ireland. most importantly the Network has been set up on the principle of partnership between all stakeholders especially people living with diabetes and our primary care colleagues. this event launches a series of regional work programmes to focus on the priorities laid out in the Strategic framework, such as improving access to foot care, diabetes patient education and making the best use of new technologies.’


diabetes locality groups will now be established across Northern Ireland as part of the Network. the groups will be led by clinicians and people living with diabetes and tasked with driving through improvements in their local areas such as new care pathways and procedures.


While the diabetes Network is to be welcomed, however, over the last few


Pictured at the launch of the new Diabetes Network for NI are (l-r) Sophie Lusby, Health and Social Care Board; Anne Beattie, Service User; David Chaney, Diabetes UK NI National Director and Dr Brid Farrell, Public Health Agency.


years, various Integrated care Partnerships (IcPs) across the Province have been hard at work behind the scenes, establishing innovative projects and initiatives to improve the quality of care for patients with diabetes and related issues.


the achievements of these IcPs were recently documented in IcP Impact Report., which contained some excellent, innovative examples of work being done in this area.


foot cARE of PRImE ImPoRtANcE the Northern Area, causeway and mid Ulster IcPs have all introduced an Enhanced foot care team for people with diabetes. these teams – which consist of a specialist podiatrist, diabetes consultant and a diabetes nurse specialist - aim to provide a more integrated foot care service, to not only support service users to better manage their condition and their cardiovascular risk, but to enable the team to work more effectively with vascular consultants across Northern Ireland.


It is intended that the new care pathway will reduce emergency


admissions for diabetes-related foot conditions, reduce the risk of amputation and ultimately reduce the number of amputations. Patients can be referred directly by their gP, nurse, Ed or hospital to the multidisciplinary service and will be seen within 24-48 hours for an assessment and treatment.


treatment can include treating the wound and relieving pressure on the wound, treating any infection and advising on blood sugar control. over 250 referrals were received by the foot care team from April 2015 to march 2016, with 80 per cent of patients seen within 48 hours.


five per cent of patients were treated by the hospital diversion team and so avoided hospital admission, saving 344 bed days. the numbers of minor amputations carried out on patients in the causeway and mid Ulster IcP areas have been reduced by 90 per cent, from ten in 2014/15 to one in 2015/16. Just over 352 people with type 2 diabetes in the Northern area have also received structured patient education.


In the Western Area, meanwhile, the two IcPs in the West have put in


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