Care for diabetic children getting worse

Children suffering from diabetes in the UK are creating an uncertain future because of poor blood sugar level management. Not only that, the financial problems faced by the National Health Service could increase the risk of dangerous complications developing amongst our nation’s diabetic children.
Diabetes UK weighed in with the report, saying that 80 per cent of young diabetics in the UK have bad glucose control. In response to the report, the Department of Health admitted that patchy services were exacerbating the problem.
The scale of the issue is large and growing, with 20,000 insulin-dependent diabetics under 15 years old. Over 1000 children suffer from type 2 diabetes, associated with obesity, but in this area the majority apparently remain undiagnosed. To produce the results, diabetes UK studied services and their deterioration during 2005 and 2006. Apparently some NHS nurses are facing caseloads of over 300 children.
The chief executive of diabetes UK, Douglas Smallwood, said: “No wonder 80% of children have poor blood glucose control. Most are struggling to even see a specialist nurse, so any additional support is out of the question. With the inevitable explosion of children with type 2 diabetes, with no additional resources, nurses will be faced with ever increasing caseloads. We can’t afford to wait until our children start to lose their sight or need kidney dialysis before we make sure services improve. It is time resources are provided to supply the best possible specialised care and support for children with diabetes.”