Diabetes personal care charter
I’ve lived with Type 1 diabetes since 1974. I’ve always been passionate about education for people with diabetes, so when I heard that a new Diabetes Service User Group was being setup in Hammersmith & Fulham, I jumped at the chance to get involved.
Our first project was to create a really useful tool to support patients with diabetes – to better manage their condition. The Charter bullet points informs patients what they can do to manage their own condition well, and itemises what support they can expect from their healthcare professionals at their GP practice. The User Group felt that patients in general could do with more information and support, and wanted to create a tool that could be used as a check-list by both patients and practice based health care professionals.
We drafted the Charter ourselves, with additional input from GPs with a special interest in diabetes and our community specialist diabetes team.
The Charter was launched at the celebration and awards ceremony for our diabetes peer educators, mentors and champions in February 2012. It is intended that all 6,700 odd people with diabetes in Hammersmith and Fulham should receive a copy of and explanation of the Charter from their GP or practice nurse over the next twelve months.
I am really proud of what the Hammersmith and Fulham User Group has achieved over the past two years and feeling hopeful that the Charter will help to empower everyone living with diabetes in the area, to get the services and care they need moving forward.
