Waterford diabetic services at ‘crisis point’

By Claire O'Sullivan

Diabetic services in Waterford are at “crisis point” as hospital consultant and community specialist positions are lying unfilled.
Diabetics with type 1 diabetes are being told they need to travel to neighbouring counties to access insulin pumps and there is a two- year waiting list before a diabetic’s file will even be assessed by University Hospital Waterford’s (UHW) lone endocrinologist.
In addition, three badly needed community diabetic positions have not been filled by the HSE in the South East even though more than 75% of diabetics in Waterford are failing to meet target glucose levels.
This failure to appoint new staff comes as the HSE has launches a new Cycle of Care programme at GP level which is aimed at keeping diabetic care in the community and out of hospitals by giving two medical reviews to diabetics each year.
However, GPs in the South East say they can not refer any Cycle of Care patients on to specialised community dieticians or podiatrists as the service is not there.
Diabetics Ireland says the failure to fill these community positions put diabetics at greater risk of attending hospital as in and outpatients — the exact opposite of ‘Cycle of Care’s aims.
There are up to 400 patients with type one diabetes at University Hospital Waterford. However, they have to travel to Kilkenny, Wexford, Clonmel, or Cork, for insulin pumps.
Type one diabetics also have to measure their carbohydrate intake carefully, as this dictates how much insulin they should inject. Week-long carbohydrate counting courses such as Dafne are not available at UHW or in the wider county due to a lack of diabetes dieticians for adults.
Diabetic and local campaigner Liz Murphy said the services are at “crisis point”.
“Type one diabetes if not managed properly can lead to people going blind, to amputations yet we are treated this way,” she said.
“It is a fact that if you provide the help necessary for diabetics to look after their own illness, the care they receive will lead to a decline in diabetics presenting for care in hospitals and GP surgeries. Thus also reducing the huge financial burden on the HSE and the State.”
There are up to 400 Type 1 diabetics attending UHW and more than 1,500 Type 2 diabetics attending UHW.
Responding to a parliamentary question from Fine Gael’s Mary Butler, the Department of Health confirmed that the “outpatient waiting list for endocrinology is running at approximately two years, dependent on the referral and the information supplied, for the consultant to triage the priority of the appointment”.
The HSE’s 2016 Service Plan promised Waterford a community-based diabetes specialist, senior dietician, and senior podiatrist. The posts were sanctioned but the posts have not yet been advertised yet.
A Department of Health spokesman said the permanent post of consultant physician in acute medicine/ endocrinology was offered to a candidate but he decided not to accept the post.
“Recently the hospital has put in place a temporary consultant for a period of six months to provide an opportunity to examine the service and to assess if the second post should be that of consultant physician/endocrinology,” he said.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/diabetic-services-at-crisis-point-402203.html