New type 2 diabetes support service launching across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland
The Leicester Diabetes Centre (LDC) has partnered with NHS provider, Oviva to provide a new innovative service
67,600 adults in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland who are living with type 2 diabetes will now be able to get free personalised support at home on the NHS.
People living with type 2 diabetes can manage condition remotely, track progress, and get coaching through their smartphone – free via the NHS
Leicester-born MyDESMOND being delivered in the city it was created again
Oviva expands its proven remote-first care as lead provider in Leicestershire and Rutland to support diabetes needs
Commissioned by the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Clinical Commissioning Groups, the Oviva Diabetes Support Service will be free to access through referral via GP or Practice Nurse. Once referred, Oviva will ensure access to the most appropriate intervention for the individual's needs.
Delivery by Oviva is remote-first and tailored to patients’ needs, including one-to-one or group pathways, printed materials or use of Oviva's NHS Digital approved app and online Learn portal. The service will also provide support from the award winning, Leicester-born self-management diabetes education platform MyDESMOND, as well as the reintroduction of DESMOND face-to-face groups in 2022.
This is the first time LDC and Oviva have partnered in this way to provide a multi-faceted, fully inclusive educational service for people with type 2 diabetes.
MyDESMOND already has 21,000 users from across the UK and Ireland, and has been hugely beneficial through the pandemic to not only help people with type 2 diabetes to better control their condition, but it also helps to improve distress and general well-being.
Lucy Diamond, Head of Clinical for Oviva said: “Oviva is delighted to be partnering with LDC and MyDESMOND. Together our programmes offer gold standard health information, personalised support, and flexibility to work around people's lives so that we can help more people improve their health long term. We are proud to see what people are able to achieve whilst taking part in our programme.”
The LDC is an international centre of excellence in diabetes research, education and innovation and is led by Co-Directors Professor Melanie Davies CBE and Professor Kamlesh Khunti. Hosted at Leicester General Hospital, the centre is a partnership between the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust and the University of Leicester.
Professor Davies CBE, a Professor of Diabetes Medicine at the University of Leicester, said: “People need to be given the essential knowledge and skills to manage their diabetes otherwise they will be at risk of complications, including blindness, amputation, heart disease or stroke.
“Self-management is not just about giving people a leaflet; it should be about a quality experience where they can get to grips with their condition. We are extremely proud to be part of the Oviva Diabetes Support Service delivering free self-management education back in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland: the home of DESMOND and MyDESMOND. ”
Professor Khunti, Professor of Primary Care Diabetes & Vascular Medicine at the University of Leicester, added: “People with diabetes have a demanding condition to manage, yet on average they only see a healthcare professional for an hour a year.
“Evidence-based structured education programmes are a proven method to enable supported self-care in diabetes. And with the world-wide step change in the role of technology since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic it is paramount that programmes such as MyDESMOND and innovations like the Oviva Diabetes Support Service are made available.”
This holistic service will aid in the continued support of people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, enabling wider access to care across Leicestershire and Rutland.
DESMOND is the collaborative name for a family of self-management education interventions for people with, or at risk of, Type 2 diabetes. To find more information on the MyDESMOND programme, visit https://www.mydesmond.com/home/
For information on the Oviva Diabetes Support programme, please visit the website here
Find out more about the Leicester Diabetes Centre here