[U]niversity Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust is opening the doors of its Diabetes Centre at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary to the public, staff, partners and third sector organisations from Monday 12 June – Friday 16 June, from 1pm – 4pm as part of diabetes week. The awareness week kicks off on 11 June, and this year the theme is: Know Diabetes. Fight Diabetes.
The centre’s five consultation rooms will feature resources and education and the chance to talk to staff about:
- Structured education – DESMOND
- Putting feet first
- Reducing diabetes risk
- Living well with diabetes-sport hobbies, eating out
- Preconception education
On Tuesday 13 June there will be the chance to speak to a representative of DESMOND – a UK NHS training course for people with type 2 diabetes that helps people to identify their own health risks and to set their own goals.
The centre, which was inspired by a patient story at a Board of Directors meeting in 2014, was officially opened by former Mayor of Lancaster and Councillor Robert Redfern on Wednesday 5 April.
The project was part of the Trust’s Listening into Action initiative, which was launched in September 2014 to put the power back into the hands of Trust staff who lead on the improvements that they think the Trust should make for patients and staff.
Deborah Whittle, Advanced Nurse Practitioner, UHMBT, said: “Patient empowerment to self-manage their diabetes through education is an essential element of diabetes care. This is a fantastic opportunity for people to talk to professionals, find out more about diabetes and get any information they may need.”
The centre will be dedicated to specialist outpatient services for people living with diabetes in North Lancashire. Consultant and nurse-led clinics will move over to the centre from Monday 3 July 2017. Once clinics start the centre will be open initially, Monday to Friday 8am-6pm. Services at the new centre will include a specialist insulin pump clinic, endocrinology clinics and an additional diabetic foot clinic.
