EU funding for cross border Diabetes services
Date: 18 Jan 2010
A new cross border project has recently been awarded £1.6 million sterling from the European Union INTERREG IVA programme to implement two innovative diabetes initiatives across the Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland and the border counties of the Republic’s Health Service Executive. The project, which is being managed by Co-operation and Working Together (CAWT), the cross border health services partnership, will focus on children and adolescents and also women with diabetes planning pregnancy.
Diabetes is a long-term condition that can affect adults and children and is associated with the development of complications that affect the quality of life of those with diabetes. However, it is well recognised that these complications can be delayed or prevented by the provision of high quality timely care and education.
At the CAWT cross border Diabetes project workshop in Armagh. Seated (L to R): Emma Meneely, Project Manager, CAWT Diabetes project and Brigid McGinty, Programme Manager, CAWT. Back row (L to R): Dr Ann Shannon, Specialist in Public Health Medicine, HSE West; Dr Brid Farrell, Consultant in Public Health Medicine, Public Health Agency; Dr Roy Harper, Consultant Physician & Endocrinologist, South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust; Pauline O’Hanlon, Diabetes Nurse Specialist, HSE Dublin North East.
From early 2010 young people with diabetes, their families and carers will be able to access specialist diabetes education programmes throughout Northern Ireland and the border counties of the HSE. The second initiative, which will also commence in 2010, will ensure that women with diabetes who are planning a pregnancy will have access to Pre-pregnancy Care Clinics, where they will be offered the support and information necessary to ensure the best possible outcomes both for mother and baby. In the HSE West, this project will work alongside the Atlantic Diabetes in Pregnancy Study, which is already underway in some parts of this project region.
Speaking at recent workshops in Co. Armagh to plan the implementation of both cross border initiatives, Dr Brid Farrell, Consultant in Public Health Medicine, Public Health Agency said: “These are important service developments in diabetes care across the border region. We are delighted with the level of interest and look forward to being able to offer high quality pre-pregnancy care and education programmes to the target groups.”
This view was also echoed by Dr Ann Shannon, Specialist in Public Health Medicine, HSE West who stated: “We are delighted to be able to utilise this cross border opportunity to enhance services for women and children with diabetes. We plan to incorporate new technologies to assist women in achieving good blood sugar control which will be an exciting part of the project’s delivery. We will also utilise e-learning to support our new diabetes education programmes for children.”
Professional staff from all five Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland and the HSE’s border counties attended the workshop in Lurgan, Co. Armagh to discuss the roll out of both initiatives and local delivery. Both programmes are scheduled to begin in Spring 2010.
Ends….
Contact
Sadie Bergin
Communications Manager, Co-operation and Working Together (CAWT)
Tel: 028 71 272100 / 048 71 272100 (from Republic of Ireland)
Mob: 077 64204430 / 00 44 77 64204430 (from Republic of Ireland)
Email: sadie.bergin@westhealth.n-i.nhs.uk
Notes to Editor
1. Co-operation and Working Together (CAWT) is a cross border health and social care partnership comprising the border counties of the Health Service Executive in the Republic of Ireland and the Southern and Western Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland. The Health and Social Care Board and the Public Health Agency in Northern Ireland are also partners. CAWT is managing a range of cross border health and social care programmes, part financed by the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund through the INTERREG IVA cross-border Programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body.
2. The CAWT Diabetes project is 3.5 years in duration and is part of CAWT’s ‘Putting Patients, Clients and Families First’ initiative funded by the European Union INTERREG IVA programme. The number of cases of adult diabetes increased by 10% in Northern Ireland between 2004/06 and 2006/07. The number of case in Northern Ireland is expected to increase by 26% and by 37% in the Republic of Ireland between 2005 and 2015. This increase is due to increased levels of Type 2 diabetes. A woman who has Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes that is not tightly controlled has a higher chance of having a baby with a birth defect than a woman without diabetes.
3. The European Union’s INTERREG IVA programme is designed to support cross border co-operation, social cohesion and economic development between regions of the EU. The Northern Ireland/Ireland programme is managed by the Special EU Programmes Body and covers all of Northern Ireland, the Border Region of Ireland and Western Scotland. It aims to address the economic and social disadvantage that can result from the existence of a border.