Changing Health

Type 2 diabetes support for 150,000 Mancunians

Changing Health’s behaviour change programme is now available to provide 150,000 people living in Greater Manchester Type 2 diabetes support, as part of a suite of digital resources to help them better manage their condition and live healthier lives.

The NHS England and Innovate UK funded initiative makes diabetes support available from a range of providers any time, anywhere via a one-stop shop web platform, Greater Manchester Diabetes My Way. Users will benefit from digital education on lifestyle and personalised, one-to-one behaviour coaching, delivered by Changing Health, alongside tools for easier sharing of glucose monitoring data and care records with healthcare professionals.

The Idea Behind Changing Health’s Type 2 Diabetes Support Programme

The scheme was launched with the aim of giving people with diabetes all the skills and knowledge they need to play a more active role in managing their condition, by adopting positive diet and exercise habits and learning how to maintain lifestyle changes over the long term.

Type 2 diabetes support in Greater Manchester has in the past been limited to classroom education programmes, which are often inaccessible for those unable to travel or take time off work, or who have learning difficulties. Digital tools overcome these challenges, and in some cases, have been shown to improve uptake of diabetes support by more than 500%.

In addition to improving the support on offer for people with diabetes, the initiative is also likely to deliver significant cost savings for healthcare delivery in Greater Manchester, with fewer complications arising from the condition, fewer hospitalisations and fewer A&E attendances.

Here’s what the experts have to say

John Grumitt, Changing Health Chief Executive, said: “It’s great to be selected as one of the Greater Manchester Diabetes My Way providers and build on the evidence that with access to the right support, people with diabetes can make big changes in their lives and manage their condition more effectively.

“Health Secretary Matt Hancock shared his vision last week of delivering more patient-centric care, facilitated by digital tools. Greater Manchester Diabetes My Way will play a key role in making that vision a reality.

“We know that a large proportion of people with Type 2 diabetes want to make a change in their lives – but often, they simply aren’t sure how best to go about it. This initiative aims to change that.

“Where previous behavioural interventions faced some major practical and financial challenges, today’s launch is a win-win: people with diabetes are empowered to sustain long-term lifestyle changes, while healthcare providers benefit from better communication with their patients, better health outcomes and a lesser administrative burden.”

Naresh Kanumilli, SCN Clinical Lead for Diabetes, said: “This has the potential to be a real game-changer in Greater Manchester. With a large and growing Type 2 diabetes population, we need to adapt to the modern world and harness the power of new digital technology to embrace changes in how we support people living with diabetes.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

  • Wave 2 of the Innovate UK Test Bed funding programme has agreed a grant of £975,000 towards the £1.2m project cost, with the remainder contributed by the industry partners involved.
  • John Grumitt, Changing Health CEO, is available for interview
  • Case studies of people who have achieved diabetes remission using digital tools are available.

Personalised Support For Patients Could Save The NHS Millions

Knowledge and confidence are a potent mix. That much has been made clear this morning, as new research from the Health Foundation shows that if people with long-term conditions were provided personalised support, a staggering 436,000 emergency hospital admissions and 690,000 A&E attendances could be avoided entirely.

The findings confirm the conclusion I reached with Professor Mike Trenell of Newcastle University in 2015: that when people know what to do and they feel they can do it, they can achieve incredible things. It was on that basis that we founded Changing Health, delivering behaviour change programmes for people with Type 2 diabetes.

Many people with Type 2 don’t know how to properly manage their condition. There’s a wealth of information to take in, with too much misinformation online, and GPs rarely have enough time to give their patients much further guidance than a stack of leaflets.

But if we could give everybody with Type 2 diabetes a comprehensive understanding of diet, exercise and how lifestyle impacts on the condition – and then empower them to act on that understanding – the implications for public health are enormous.

How Would Personalised Support Work?

The Health Foundation report makes a number of recommendations on how to achieve this: primarily health coaching, peer support and greater access to apps. All have been shown to improve patients’ PAM (Patient Activation Measure) scores, which predict an individual’s engagement with their health and healthcare based on over 400 peer-reviewed studies.

Indeed, a trial of Changing Health’s programme in the North West London Collaboration of CCGs found that personalised support for diabetes, including lifestyle coaching and digital education, results in a 10-point PAM increase – enough to boost patients’ score by one level (out of a total four).

According to the Health Foundation, if we can give just the lowest ability patients (level 1) the knowledge and the confidence to manage long-term conditions as well as those at level 2, we could prevent 504,000 A&E attendances, and 333,000 emergency admissions per year. That equates to 5% of all emergency attendances, and 6% of all emergency admissions in England each year.

On an individual level, we see this science in action every week as more people with Type 2 diabetes put their condition into remission. Once people know how, for example, complex carbohydrates affect their blood sugars, and they’re given a motivational boost on a regular basis, they’re often able to cut out the bread and the pasta – and begin reducing their HbA1c. It’s simply a matter of providing that support in the first place.

Technology Simplifies Personalised Support

Fortunately, we’re seeing increasing recognition among healthcare providers that, as the Health Foundation points out, there’s a very broad spectrum of ability and confidence among people to manage long term conditions, and different approaches are needed accordingly. At the same time, technology is enabling the delivery of more personalised support for such conditions, improving patients’ self-efficacy in managing them and, as a result, living happier, healthier lives.

For Type 2 diabetes the outlook does, then, look promising. But diagnoses are still rising, and the clock is ticking. We must act fast.