Leicestershire diabetes care receives multi-million pound boost

Diabetes services in Leicestershire are being boosted after health officials received a £2 million injection to ensure people with diabetes receive the highest level of care.
The cash will be used to pay for 12 more specialist diabetes nurses, more education for GPs and practice nurses to help them treat patients, and for more people to go on special courses to help them manage their diabetic condition.
“This is all about care closer to people’s homes, particularly with an increasingly ageing population,” said Bernie Stribling, transformation manager for diabetes in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
“We are recruiting extra specialist nurses in diabetes so that one will be based in places across Leicestershire. Their job will be to support GPs and practice nurses in their care of patients with diabetes. I am hoping we will have them all in place by next April.”
Ms Stribling continued: “Most people do not need to go to hospital for treatment and this is about making sure they have the right support to manage their condition nearer to where they live.
“However, there are certain groups, which we call the super six, that will still need to be cared for by hospital specialists. These include children, pregnant women, hospital patients, those with renal complications, people with foot ulcer problems and those being treated with insulin pumps.
“Patient choice will always be a part of this and people can choose where they are treated. We hope that they will be able to see the benefits of the changes within the next few months.”
Latest official figures show that nearly 52,500 adults across Leicestershire suffer from either type 1 or type 2 diabetes, in addition to 365 people under the age of 17.