# Diabetes: 24,000 Deaths A Year Blamed On NHS



## Northerner (May 23, 2012)

Widespread failings in NHS diabetic care cause 24,000 unnecessary deaths every year, a report has warned.

The National Audit Office (NAO) report found treatment for diabetic patients is a postcode lottery with a massive variation in quality of care from one region to another. In some regions, only 6% of sufferers received the recommended levels of care compared to 69% in the highest-achieving primary care trusts (PCTs).

Across England only half of people with diabetes received the recommended standards of care in 2009 to 2010. But not a single PCT delivered the nine basic care processes which reduce the risk of diabetes-related complications such as blindness, amputation or kidney disease.
Barbara Young, chief executive of Diabetes UK, said: "This report shows that diabetes healthcare in England is not meeting the challenge and that much of the colossal amount of money being spent on it is being wasted.
"But by using the money we already spend on diabetes more wisely, we could stop 24,000 people dying unnecessarily every year.

http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/article/16233541


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