Tens of thousands of people with Type-2 diabetes may soon be able to access digital structured education programmes to better manage their condition, thanks to a £3.5 million funding boost from NHS England. NHSE is to announce that 25% of the diabetes education Transformation Fund can now be used for digital tools.
Changing Health, a leading provider of digital behaviour change programmes for people with Type-2 diabetes, pre-diabetes, and weight management, welcomed the news.
Changing Health Chief Executive John Grumitt said: “This is exciting news for the diabetes community and health economies across the UK. It’s a positive acknowledgement that digital education can help increase both access and completion rates for structured education that lead to significant improvements in health outcomes,”
The recent National Diabetes Audit (NDA) put attendance of face-to-face education at 7%. By comparison, digital education can achieve a 10-fold increase in a fraction of the time.
The funding will run until March 2019, and could provide access to digital education for tens of thousands of people. Detailed guidance will be out soon from NHS England. Commissioning organisations have been advised to begin their applications immediately.