DIABETES sufferers in County Durham will receive better care thanks to the hard work of a group of health workers.
The nurses, doctors, pharmacists and dieticians from Durham, Chester-le-Street and Derwentside have successfully completed an intensive course to help improve care for people with diabetes.
Part of the course involved them listening to patients' experiences to give them a better understanding of what it was like to live with the condition. They also learnt about the role played by other health care workers.
Last Thursday, to mark their achievement, the 20 participants were presented with certificates in Diabetes Care.
Anne Greenley, diabetes strategy facilitator for Derwentside and Durham and Chester-le-Street Primary Care trusts, said: "Improving the quality of diabetes care is a high priority locally and nationally.
"In North Durham we have approximately 6,000 patients diagnosed with diabetes currently, but this is likely to increase in the future.
"It has been estimated that the number of patients in the UK with diabetes is expected to rise from just over one million in 1997 to under three million by 2010."
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