Name: Elaine Duffin, Practice Nurse and Kim Swinhoe, DSN
Telephone: Please email
Email: elaineduffin@nhs.net or Kim.Swinhoe@uhcw.nhs.uk
Times available: 9am – 5pm
Local referral pathway to DESMOND locally: Via GP, Practice Nurse or Hospital Diabetes Team.
We have been running DESMOND sessions for 2 years, usually one per month, using both the F1 and F2 format. People attending averages out at about 8 newly diagnosed patients from the Rugby district per session, and we have a waiting list of about 3 months.
We're lucky because we are able to use a meeting room within a GP surgery, free of charge - not that we haven't had problems along the line with funding!!! Every new group raises different issues - so although we stick to the curriculum no session is ever the same and we've had very positive feedback from the people with Type 2 diabetes themselves as well as people accompanying them and also from their Practice Nurses.
Most of the people attending have been diagnosed for about 3-6 months which means that DESMOND helps them to make sense of all the info given to them at initial diagnosis, and also to work out problems they have encountered with the support of the group. It would be great to set up the DESMOND Foundation Programme, but in reality both financial and time constraints for both of us won't allow it for the time being.
Localities in the PCT where DESMOND is available: Rugby - local to us
Coventry - has its own DESMOND educators
DESMOND Newly Diagnosed programme available
(for patients up to 12 months post diagnosis) YES
DESMOND Foundation programme available
(for those with established diabetes) NO