The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 275 No 7381 p767
24 December 2005

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Many PCTs have no early diabetes detection plans

Only half of primary care trusts in England have programmes in place to identify diabetes early in the condition’s progress, according to a report presented to MPs last week by Diabetes UK and the All Party Parliamentary Group for Diabetes.

“Diabetes — state of the nations 2005” also reveals that about one in seven members of Diabetes UK with diabetes thought they had had the condition for more than three years before they were diagnosed.

Irene Gummerson, a community pharmacist with a special interest in diabetes, commented: “Early detection of diabetes is important.The sooner individuals know they have diabetes, get professional advice — and medication when appropriate — and act on it, the more chance they have of delaying the progression of the long-term complications.”

She added: that the UK National Screening Committee is due to report by the end of 2005.“But even if it were to state that the best way of screening is a targeted, systematic one in a GP practice, there could still be a role for community pharmacy, considering the latter’s accessibility and longer opening hours,” Ms Gummerson said.