Diabetes-related Complications

Debate between Justin Madders and Jamie Reed

Tuesday 7th June 2016 Westminster Hall

[Justin Madders]

We could have been forgiven for making that error today, but we will talk more about pronunciation afterwards. My hon. Friend spoke with great sincerity about the benefits for children of taking part in sport, and about how once they get into it they can enjoy the physical activity. I know from experience that dragging kids off the Xbox can be a difficult challenge, but once they actually get out there they enjoy themselves, and that contributes to a healthier lifestyle. He also made a valuable point about the world of work, in that so many more jobs are now sedentary in their nature. Of course, a healthy workforce is a more productive one, and productivity is a challenge for the whole country.

My hon. Friend the Member for Heywood and Middleton spoke with great experience of health. It was great to hear that she had been inspired by her visit to King’s College. She spoke about the national diabetes audit, and the importance of using the data collected to drive improvements. Again, she highlighted the need for more education. It was interesting to hear that some of her constituents have difficulty attending some education courses because employers are not agreeing to give them the time off. It will be interesting to hear the Minister’s reflections on that and it comes back to the point about a healthy workforce being a more productive one. We really need to get that message across to employers.

The hon. Member for Inverclyde (Ronnie Cowan) spoke about his family’s experience and gave us a useful personal insight into the everyday challenges faced. We can all reel off the figures but hearing from someone who has had a close relationship with the condition for a considerable length of time brings home some of the practical challenges that people face.

There is a consensus, as the hon. Member for Linlithgow and East Falkirk (Martyn Day) said. All hon. Members acknowledge that diabetes is one of the most significant healthcare challenges, given the impact that it has on NHS resources and, more importantly, the impact it has on people. We heard very powerful details of that today.

To put the condition in perspective statistically, 45 people in the UK will have been diagnosed with diabetes in the time it takes to complete today’s debate. In that time, one person will have undergone a diabetes-related amputation and four people will have died prematurely due to diabetes-related complications. According to figures produced by Diabetes UK, there are currently 4 million people living with diabetes in the UK, of whom 549,000 are undiagnosed.

The number of people with diabetes is increasing, as various hon. Members have said, and it has more than doubled since 1996. More than doubling the number of people with any condition in 20 years is bound to lead to serious questions about how our society is operating. Indeed, several hon. Members have given some good examples of the challenges we face. Part of our role is to question and support, where possible, how the Government respond to those challenges, particularly when we are talking about something that can be preventable. The level of interest shown by hon. Members today shows that there is at least recognition and agreement that the issue demands significant attention.

The number of people with a diagnosis is huge, as is the cost to the health service. The NHS now spends about £10 billion on diabetes each year, which is equivalent to about 10% of its budget, and £8 billion of that is estimated to be spent on complications, which, as we have discussed, are largely avoidable. Diabetes is an important issue to tackle at any time but, when we have such financial pressures on the NHS, it becomes even more pressing to really get on top of trying to avoid the complications it can cause.

At the heart of the issue are the people involved. Although many are able to manage their diabetes effectively, it is still a life-changing condition that has an impact on those living with it on a daily basis. We heard from the hon. Member for Inverclyde about how it really has an impact not only on the individual, but on their family. For somebody with type 2 diabetes, managing their condition means learning how to treat it with diet and exercise, and possibility coming to terms with the need to take medication and insulin. For someone with type 1 diabetes, it means constant diet management and carefully working out the correct amount of insulin to take. However, for everyone living with diabetes, it means being aware of the potential complications that can occur, and keeping a careful watch not only on blood glucose levels, but on cholesterol, weight, blood pressure and the conditions of eyes and feet.

Put simply, living with diabetes means becoming an expert on the condition. Despite that, less than 2% of newly diagnosed individuals with type 1 diabetes, and just 5.9% of those newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, attend a diabetes education course, which is a theme that has been mentioned by various hon. Members. Those figures alone are disappointing, but they are even more so given that there is clear evidence that the courses reduce the risk of individuals developing complications, and given the fact that a worrying 69% of people say that they do not fully understand their diabetes. The very nature of the condition means that self-management is the only practical way to reduce the risk of complications.

We welcome the publication of the Government’s new improvement and assessment framework for CCGs, which will assess CCGs on the attendance of structured education schemes and on the NICE recommended treatment targets. Will the Minister tell us what steps the Government are taking to improve access to diabetes self-management education, what steps she envisages taking against CCGs that perform poorly in the improvement assessment framework, and what support will be available to those identified as poor performers in order to bring them up to what is considered best practice?

[Mr Jamie Reed]

Does the shadow Minister agree that some consideration ought to be given to the funding allocation for CCGs with particularly large concentrations of people with type 2 diabetes, which is, after all, linked to obesity and lifestyle, especially considering that obesity is increasingly statistically linked—there is a clear correlation—with the incidence of poverty and socioeconomic disadvantage? Does he agree that CCGs with those significant populations should have their funding allocation reviewed?

[Justin Madders]

I agree that that needs due consideration. In some written answers, the percentages of people with diabetes per constituency are shown, and there are some definite peaks and troughs. If we are to get the issue under control, we must think more strategically about where the resources are put.

At the moment, a third of CCGs do not commission specific courses, which is contrary to national guidance. I hope that the Minister will be able to tell us what she will do to try to end the current postcode lottery. One of the most convenient and effective sources of education for many people with diabetes is their local pharmacy. There is a need—possibly, a demand—for expanding the role that pharmacies play in supporting people with diabetes. What are the opportunities and possibilities for thinking again about the Government’s plans to slash the community pharmacy budget, which may lead to the closure of up to 3,000 sites?

More significant than the variation in education is the variation in the levels of care and support offered depending on location, the age of the patient and the type of diabetes. There is evidence of markedly different routine care throughout the country, which has a huge impact on the quality of life of diabetics, as well as being costly to the NHS. One in six people in hospital has diabetes, yet one in three hospitals has no diabetes specialist nurse. The national diabetes in-patient audit paints a worrying picture of the variations in the way in which the condition is managed by hospitals, and the unacceptable number of in-patients suffering avoidable complications.

Some of the most serious diabetes-related complications are avoidable amputations and foot ulcers. We have heard that £1 in every £150 that the NHS spends is in that area, and such action has a dramatic, life-changing impact on individuals and their families. As my hon. Friend the Member for Dewsbury said, in 2013 the Health Secretary committed to reducing the rate of amputations by 50% in five years. Will the Minister tell us what progress has been made towards achieving that goal, particularly given that Diabetes UK has said that no progress has really been made? Will she confirm that she still hopes to meet that target?

NICE recommends that all people with diabetes undergo an annual foot check but, in the worst performing CCGs, one in four people are not receiving a foot check at all. Part of the reason for that is the shortage in the number of podiatrists, particularly following a recent reduction in the number of students from 361 to 326. I am concerned that the plan to scrap bursaries for podiatry students and to push them into about £50,000 of debt will make the situation even worse. I ask the Minister to reconsider the direction of travel on this policy. Will she advise us what assessment has been made of the likely number of podiatrists who will be trained each year under the new funding regime?

I will close by making a few remarks about prevention. As I said at the beginning of my speech, the number of people suffering from diabetes continues to rise. The primary driver of that is, of course, lifestyle. Some 11.9 million people are currently at an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes as a result of their waist circumference or weight. Two in every three people in the UK are now overweight or obese. As other Members have said, people might not necessarily feel that that relates to them, but we must reflect on those figures. Obesity accounts for 80% to 85% of the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and therefore we need to focus on education and treating the condition. The main strategy to address the prevalence of type 2 diabetes has to be to address the rise in obesity, particularly at a young age, as the hon. Member for St Ives said.

We welcome the Government’s announcement of a sugar tax in the Budget, but that measure will only be effective as part of a wider strategy to address childhood obesity. I do not know whether the Minister will be able to tell us, but what is holding back the publication of the strategy? Is there disagreement on what will be in it? Is it at all possible for her to give us a date for when it will be published? [Interruption.] I suspect I have my answer from the grin on her face.

Both sides of the House are alert to, and supportive of, the need to get on top of this challenge but, as with all such matters, the Government will be judged by the results, on which we will keep a close eye in the coming years.