Finalist
Diabetes UK: Making Hospitals Safe for People with Diabetes
Summary of work
One in six hospital beds is occupied by someone with diabetes and by 2030 this is expected to rise to one in four. In hospital, people with diabetes have high infection rates, longer stays and increased mortality.
This has a significant cost; diabetes accounts for over 11% of the NHS inpatient care budget (£2.5bn).
In March 2017, supported by Sanofi, Diabetes UK set out to understand whether hospital care is safe for people with diabetes in England and identify opportunities to improve outcomes. Over 18 months, Diabetes UK visited over 25 hospitals and interviewed a range of patients and healthcare professionals.
The insights were developed into a compelling policy report co-created by a design group of patients and healthcare professionals with clear recommendations. On launch day in October 2018, the report reached almost 40 million people, gaining coverage in a range of nationals, including the Guardian and the Daily Mail, and secured front page of the Express. NHS England pledged to improve the quality of inpatient care in the NHS Long Term Plan and the recommendations are being adopted by NHS Trusts. The programme will continue throughout 2019 focusing on empowering patients to demand better care.
Judges’ comments
Sanofi and Diabetes UK worked together to produce an engaging and interesting entry. It was fantastic that NHS England pledged to improve the quality of inpatient care in the NHS Long Term Plan. The patient voice comes through very strongly and it moved forward this specific aspect of diabetes care.
