Agenda item

At its previous meeting the Board had considered the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment and had identified 3 areas it wished to consider in more detail.  One area was the Diabetes service.

UshaChapitti, Project Manager – Long Term Conditions at Bromley CCG addressed the Board. 

Her report provided an update on the ongoing work that started with a Stakeholder event in October 2012.

Bromley currently spent £8.9m per annum on Diabetes. Ms Chapitti’s Team had looked at various models used nationwide to deliver Diabetic Services, focussing on two models in particular; Derby and Portsmouth and using elements of both as a basis for an integrated service which could be adapted to meet the needs of Bromley residents.

She outlined how the old system compared with the new integrated Diabetes Service.

The benefits of the new service included enabling consultants and specialists to work more closely with GPs to support them.  It meant speedier hospital admission if needed in addition to being a more effective use of resources.

There would be more investment in GP and nurse training and this would be ongoing with the aim of providing better care to diabetic patients. It will also give patients the confidence to know their care was ongoing. The training was being developed with Bromley Healthcare and King’s College. GP practices had raised concerns that all practices needed to engage to enable a programme of training to be developed.  Practices would also be encouraged to share expertise.

The service would also give patients better access to education more patient involvement. The Team was currently seeking the views of Bromley Healthcare on how to engage patients.  Work was underway to develop the proposal and implement it in September 2013. The outcomes from the training would be shared with the HWB and Bromley Healthwatch. In addition Bromley Healthcare was establishing a Management Group composing of members from the voluntary sector, the community and patients.

The Chairman asked how patient satisfaction would be measured.  In response, he was informed that this was one of the key performance indicators (KPI). 

It was agreed that statistics showing the prevalence of diabetes in Bromley would be provided for the next meeting.  The number of diabetics was increasing by 5% per annum but it was hoped the new service would help achieve one of the KPI’s for reducing emergency hospital admissions.

Ms Chapitti reported that retinal screening was not within the scope of the project.. However Dr Bhan continued that yearly screening for diabetics reached 100% and were often carried out more than once a year.

The Board asked what was being done to stop patients progressing up the Tiers.  In response Dr Bhan explained that work included ensuring good control of blood sugar levels, regular checks and screening for eyes and kidney function and encouraging patients to attend the diabetes education courses; DAFNE and DESMOND.

The Board then asked about paediatric diabetes and were informed that, currently, there were not separate targets for children.  The Programme would start with adults and older people and once the service was fully operational it was likely that the paediatric diabetic services would be reviewed. 

The Chairman requested that Dr Angela Bhan and Mr Terry Parkin work up a proposal for how paediatric diabetes could be addressed jointly between the Local Authority and Bromley CCG focusing on a preventative approach.

When asked about the potential financial savings, the Project Manager explained that an estimated saving of £855k would be achieved over a three year period by the Clinical Commissioning Group.

RESOLVED that:

1. The report be noted.

2. A report outlining the financial context would be submitted to a future meeting of the Board.

3. That Dr Bhan and Mr Parkin work up a proposal for how to jointly tackle paediatric diabetes in the borough.