TCD Prof John Nolan wins Irish Healthcare Award for Study on Diabetes
Posted on: 02 November 2007
Diabetes is costing Ireland €580m each year according to the CODÉIRE study led by Trinity College Professor John Nolan, consultant endocrinologist in St. James’s Hospital, which won the overall prize at the Irish Healthcare Awards on October 24th last.
There are believed to be 250,000 people with diabetes in Ireland with a third of these believed to be undiagnosed. The CODÉIRE study (Cost Of Diabetes-ÉIRE), which was sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline and led by Professor John Nolan aimed to raise awareness of the growing diabetes epidemic and to highlight the fact that appropriate healthcare resources should be targeted to the management of the disease. The study found that diabetes costs €2,468 per patient in Ireland.
“I am delighted and honoured that our study of the costs of Type 2 diabetes has received the top award as well as the award for best public health initiative from the Irish Healthcare Awards. This is an important acknowledgement of the significance of diabetes as an Irish public health issue,” said Professor Nolan. “Our study showed clearly that two thirds of all current expenditure on diabetes is for the treatment of high cost complications of diabetes – complications which are largely preventable by early assessment and preventive management. We argue strongly that the budget for diabetes care in Ireland needs to be invested in preventive care. That means early access to specialist assessment for all adults and children diagnosed with diabetes, and regular review in an integrated programme linking diabetes centres with GP’s.”
Professor Nolan went on to say that:”Our findings in relation to the costs of diabetes care illustrate an important point in relation to health service funding. Despite the rapid increase in the prevalence of diabetes in recent years, there has been only minimal investment in frontline care for diabetes. Ireland lags far behind all other EU countries in numbers of clinics, diabetes specialists (for both adults and children), specialist nurses, dieticians and podiatrists. It is a commonly stated myth that the Irish government has invested massively in health, with no return. Our study shows that large sums of money are spent but on treating preventable late complications of diabetes. Diabetes care in Ireland urgently needs investment in frontline specialists and services that have been proven to improve outcomes for patients.”
The CODÉIRE study found that the average age of a person with diabetes was 64 and had been diagnosed with the condition for between six and seven years. There is a slight male prevalence in diabetes (57%) and diabetes is believed to run at a rate of 6% in Ireland, with 3.9% being diagnosed.
According to the International Diabetes Federation diabetes is expected to rise by 71% worldwide by 2025. Ireland is likely to experience a similar increase.
The Irish Healthcare Awards are run by the Irish Medical Times and they aim to celebrate innovative excellence and achievement in the Irish health system.