With diabetes on the rise and NHS reforms on the agenda, there are some big questions about what the future holds for those who suffer from this condition. Diabetes charity Diabetes UK has recently carried out its own research into how well equipped the country’s hospitals are to deal with people with diabetes, in a project known as Diabetes Watch. Three UK hospitals, including Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, were found to have no specialist diabetes nurses for inpatient care.

Barbara Young is the chief executive at Diabetes UK. She has voiced concern that the number of nurses specialising in diabetes treatment on the frontline seems to be in decline at the moment. This is especially worrying in a context where diabetes diagnoses are increasingly common. It’s widely accepted that diabetes is a serious disease, but researchers at Edinburgh University have put a fresh perspective on the issue. They have found that an affluent person with diabetes is exposed to the same risk of death as a person without diabetes who is living in poverty.

It’s important that these patients get the right medication, that hospital admissions are kept to a minimum, and that those patients who are admitted to hospital are able to leave as quickly as possible. The fact that diabetes specialist nurses (DSNs) play a crucial role in ensuring those standards are met is supported by a wealth of evidence.

NHS Trusts are ignoring warnings and failing to consider the long-term implications of their decisions for patients, according to Dr Peter Carter, chief executive and general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing. With the Government’s Spending Review threatening to hit the NHS with massive cuts to its budget, there are fears that 10% of specialist nurses may be made redundant.

Patients depend on specialist services, and these services ultimately keep people out of hospital, which makes economic and clinical sense.

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