The team from Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust (PCNFT) has co-designed a website and app with their young patients to reduce long-term complications from their condition and put them firmly in the driving seat of their care. Type 1 diabetes is not preventable and can have serious life-threatening consequences if not managed properly. In March, the latest National Paediatric Diabetes Report audit showed a worryingly high number of young people aged 12 and over showing early signs of potentially serious complications.With better education, children and young people can reduce these complications , a great way to deliver education to children and young people is through their phones and the internet.
Secure access
The children are registered with the nurse on the site and app and then can use them securely. Modules include stress management and emotional wellbeing as well as more clinical aspects of their condition.
There is a personalised dashboard, so children can track their learning and reports on self-assessment questionnaires can be sent to their nurse. For Claire, this will be vital to ensuring that the young people really understand the different aspects of their condition and how to manage them. Sugar3 gives children and young people some control over their care. They can have Skype consultations, request appointments and use email for questions and support.
Sugar3 has been co-designed at all stages, with children with type 1 and their parents as equal partners in decision making, to ensure quality and that the site and app will work for those who use it. Children and parents sit on the steering group and provide regular feedback to the project team.
‘The app grows with the child/young person, and content is age-appropriate and they can move through the levels. It has the ability to get us all talking about diabetes within the family but also gives Luke a place to go and have any worries or concerns he might have answered.’
Further information can be found here http://bit.ly/1ReDOiN