People with diabetes in hospital are a being put at risk by errors leading to dangerously high or low blood glucose levels, a new report highlights today.
The National Diabetes Inpatient Audit, managed by the Health and Social Care Information Centre, shows that:
- 32.4% of patients included in the audit experienced at least one medication error during their stay, leading to increased risk of hypoglycaemia
- 0.6% of patients audited developed Diabetic Ketoacidosis after admission
- Nearly half of diabetes related hospital admissions were as a result of foot disease
- Deteriorating glycaemic control is not being recognised or addresses, leading to serious complications
- People with diabetes are more likely to be admitted to hospital as an emergency compared to the general population
- People with diabetes tend to have a longer stay in hospital than those without diabetes
Karen Addington, Chief Executive, JDRF commented: ‘This audit not only shows a desperate need for improved understanding of how to correctly use insulin for type 1 and insulin dependent type 2 diabetes, but underlines our call for increased investment in medical research to improve blood glucose control, reduce complications like foot disease, and ultimately find the cure.'
Read the full report