Diabetes-related Complications

Debate between David Simpson and Paula Sherriff

Tuesday 7th June 2016 Westminster Hall

[Paula Sherriff]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that relevant contribution, and I absolutely agree. It is worth noting that, as with many conditions, education is often the key, and I will allude to that later in my speech.

[David Simpson (Upper Bann) (DUP)]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

[Paula Sherriff]

I will make some progress and then take further interventions.

The starkest figure of all is that every year, more than 24,000 people die prematurely due to diabetes and its complications. However, there is significant room to improve diabetes care, which would reduce the risk of diabetics developing complications and tackle the rising costs of diabetes to the NHS. First, we could take action to reduce avoidable amputations. There are more than 7,000 diabetes-related amputations every year in England alone, and foot ulcers and amputations cost £1 of every £150 spent in the NHS. I am sure hon. Members will agree that that is quite an incredible statistic. In 2013, the Secretary of State for Health committed to reducing the rate of diabetes-related amputations by 50% over five years, but the national amputation rate has since remained steady.

Action could be taken to meet that commitment. For example, the Government must ensure that clinical guidance is properly implemented and followed. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends that all people with diabetes have their feet checked every year, but in the worst-performing clinical commissioning groups, one in four people still are not receiving that annual foot check. There also appears to be a significant disparity in what the annual foot check actually means. Those at increased risk of foot problems should be referred for an assessment by a foot protection service. Having multidisciplinary foot care teams in place can reduce the risk of amputation, but almost one third of hospital sites do not have one.

That is of particular significance to me, because along with my hon. Friend the Member for Heywood and Middleton, who will no doubt have more to add during the debate, I recently visited King’s College hospital diabetic foot clinic here in London, which provides some of the best diabetic foot care in the country, if not the best. Care such as that provided at King’s is unfortunately not universal. There are currently no national drivers to lower the rate of amputations across the country, of which we believe about 80% are avoidable. With the right care in place, such as acute multidisciplinary foot teams and a robust care pathway, amputation rates could be significantly reduced. Not only would that have significant cost-saving benefits for the NHS, but more importantly, the people involved would not need to go through such a life-changing experience.

I will briefly reflect on a gentleman my hon. Friend and I met during our visit to King’s College hospital. He was due to have an amputation at another hospital within 48 hours. He was then referred to King’s College for a last chance to have his condition reviewed, where he was told that he did not need any surgery, nor an amputation. When we saw him, he was almost completely cured of his foot problems. A huge amount of money and a huge amount of distress to that man were saved. Will the Minister please confirm that the Government are still committed to the 50% reduction that the Secretary of State spoke about and tell us when they expect to see figures showing year-on-year decreases? Will she tell us what they are doing to ensure that CCGs meet the NICE guidance, and how they can ensure that multidisciplinary teams such as that at King’s operate much more widely across the NHS? The benefits we saw that morning were absolutely clear.

There is a similar need to improve in-patient care. One in six people in hospital now have diabetes, but one in three hospitals have no diabetes specialist nurse and an unacceptable number of in-patients experience diabetes-related harm while staying in hospital. Diabetes UK has pointed to evidence showing that specialist diabetes in-patient teams save three times what they cost the NHS to provide. Specialist teams make fewer prescribing errors and deliver better outcomes for their patients, so there are fewer expensive complications in hospital and shorter stays. Although most hospitals report increasing referrals and patient contacts, there has been no increase in staffing levels in diabetes teams.

I do not think that the number of in-patients who suffer diabetes complications while in hospital is acceptable, and I hope the Minister agrees. The national diabetes in-patient audit showed that 38% of in-patient drug charts had at least one diabetes medication error and 22% had at least one prescription error; that 30% of in-patients had one or more hypoglycaemic episodes, with nearly a third being severe; that 33% of people with diabetes did not think the staff looking after them knew enough about the condition; and that one in 10 hospital sites did not have any consultant time for diabetes in-patient care. Will the Minister tell us what action she intends to take to reduce those figures, assuming that the Government do not think they are acceptable?

[David Simpson]

We have heard education and early intervention mentioned. Does the hon. Lady agree that in order to help patients, and especially children—there is a reluctance for teachers to give insulin to young people within nursery provision and at primary school level—the mindset needs to change? We need to make sure that there is preventive medication as well as early intervention for children.

[Paula Sherriff]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention; once again, I agree with those points.

It makes sense both clinically and financially to improve access to diabetes self-management education. Managing diabetes well is time-consuming and can be complicated, but 69% of diabetics said they did not fully understand their condition. On average, people with diabetes spend only three hours a year with a healthcare professional. For the remaining 8,757 hours they manage their diabetes themselves, for which they need the right skills and knowledge—not to mention confidence. Diabetes self-management courses empower people with diabetes to take charge of their own care. Nine out of 10 people with diabetes who attended a course stated that they felt more confident about managing their diabetes afterwards.

Evidence collated by Diabetes UK shows that diabetes education courses reduce an individual’s risk of developing serious and costly complications and prove very cost-effective. However, more than a third of CCGs do not currently commission specific courses for people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, despite national guidance, and less than 2% of people newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes—and just 5.9% with type 2 diabetes—attend a diabetes education course. Investing in diabetes education is the big missed opportunity in diabetes care. Will the Minister agree to look at what can be done to ensure that we do not continue to miss it?