Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Programme NHSSB

							                                                          Bridgewood House, Newforge Business Park
                                                                      Newforge Lane, Belfast BT9 5NW
                                                               Tel: 028 9066 6646 Fax: 028 9066 6333
                                                                      Email: n.ireland@diabetes.org.uk
                                                                            Web: www.diabetes.org.uk


                                                                     MEDIA RELEASE
Wednesday 25th March 2009


   Joint health campaign to prevent blindness among people with diabetes

A campaign has been launched this week to warn people with diabetes in the Northern Health and
Social Services Board area not to miss vital eye test appointments which could prevent them going blind.


Diabetes UK Northern Ireland and The Department of Health’s Diabetic Retinopathy Screening
Programme are urging people to attend their annual screening appointment. Figures from the last nine
months have highlighted over 20 per cent of those invited from the Northern area did not attend their
initial appointment.


Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness and visual impairment in the UK (among those of
working age). A full Screening Programme has been active in Northern Ireland since April 2008 and it’s
estimated to stop 50 people a year from losing their sight. The Service works by identifying early signs
of retinopathy and preventing progression of the disease by way of laser therapy treatment.


Florence Brown, National Care Advisor for Diabetes UK Northern Ireland: “Diabetic retinopathy is an
extremely serious complication of diabetes and it can have devastating consequences if not picked up
early and treated. The Screening Programme is a vital tool and I would strongly urge people with
diabetes not to be complacent with their health checks – just 15 minutes could make all the difference to
your future. We are delighted to join with the Screening Programme in this campaign to ensure that
every single appointment is taken up and that people are fully aware of the risks they are taking if they
do not attend”.


Across Northern Ireland a total of 75 bus shelters will carry posters with the message ‘please don’t turn a
blind eye’. Beginning on the 23rd March the posters will run over a six week period finishing on 3rd May.
There will be a total of 15 sites in the Northern Board area including sites in Coleraine, Ballymena,
Antrim, Magherafelt, Larne and Newtownabbey.


Eamonn Quinn, Operations Manager, Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Programme said: “The Screening
Programme has been well received and we are delighted to have reached the DHSSPS initial target of
70% attendance. That said we are always keen to get as many people attending as possible as it can
make a fundamental difference to someone’s life. We hope that by working with Diabetes UK and
running the advertisements we can ensure that everyone attends and anyone with early signs of
retinopathy is identified and treatment started before any real damage is done.”


The Screening Service is offered annually to all people with diabetes, age 12 and over and consists of a
digital retinopathy photograph. In the Northern Board area patients can avail of a mobile screening unit
which travels across the Board providing screening locally. The Programme also operates a ‘mop up’
clinic whereby those who missed their first appointment can go to a designated clinic for another
appointment but, despite the additional provision only 61% of secondary appointments are attended.


There are fears that confusion may also have a part to play in people missing their retinopathy
appointment.   Florence Brown, National Care Advisor for Diabetes UK Northern Ireland, explained
“People with diabetes have to attend both the optician and the Screening Programme but it may be that
people assume because they’ve had a photograph taken at the opticians this is enough. Unfortunately
this is a completely different test so it is crucial that they attend both. An appointment letter for the
Screening Service will be sent to everyone who should be attending and I would urge people to read it
carefully and ensure they are attending both the optician and the retinopathy screening.”


Diabetes is a long-term progressive condition where the amount of glucose in your blood is too high
because the body cannot use it properly. This is because your pancreas does not produce any insulin,
or not enough, to help glucose enter you body’s cells – or the insulin that is produced does not work
properly (known as insulin resistance). There are two types of the condition – Type 1 and Type 2 and, if
not managed effectively, it can lead to long-term complications such as heart disease, stroke, blindness,
kidney failure and amputation. Diabetes kills more people in the UK than breast cancer and prostate
cancer combined.


Diabetes UK is the charity for people with diabetes, funding more than £7.5 million of medical research
every year and providing information and support to the 62,000 people living with diabetes in Northern
Ireland. It is estimated a further 15,000 people have diabetes but are unaware of it. The symptoms
include increased thirst, passing urine frequently, extreme tiredness, weight loss and blurred vision.
Anyone experiencing symptoms who think they may have diabetes should visit their GP as soon as they
can.


- ENDS -
For further media information please contact Claire Magill, Media and Campaigns Manager on 028 9066
6646, mobile 077 6414 5734 or email claire.magill@diabetes.org.uk


Notes to editor
      The Diabetes UK Careline (0845 120 2960) offers information and support on any aspect of managing
       diabetes. The line is a lo-call number and opens Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm (operates a
    translation service). Recorded information on a number of diabetes-related topics is also available on this
    number 24 hours a day.
   Diabetes UK is the charity for people with diabetes. We fund more than £7.5 million of medical research
    every year, provide information and support to people with diabetes and campaign on their behalf. For
    more information visit www.diabetes.org.uk.
   The most recent figures for Northern Ireland indicate that 60,800 people over the age of 17 are living with
    Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes in Northern Ireland. (Figures from Quality and Outcomes Framework, QOF). It
    is estimated that a further 15,000 people have the condition but do not know it.
   Latest figures from the NI Childhood Diabetes Register show 962 children under the age of 16 living with
    Type 1 diabetes. No figures are available for Type 2 diabetes.
   Membership of Diabetes UK is from £23 a year which special rates available. In addition to our bi-monthly
    magazine Balance, members receive support and the latest information on diabetes care and treatments to
    help them live a healthy life.