[A picture taken of the diabetes specialist nursing team during Diabetes Week in 2023.]
Staff at Lister Hospital have joined forces with healthcare professionals across the country this week, to raise awareness of a short-term complication of diabetes in a national drive to improve staff knowledge and care.
East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust is marking the seven-day campaign to raise awareness about, and reduce episodes of hypoglycaemia as part of Hypo Awareness Week, which runs from Monday 11 September to Sunday 17 September.
Hypoglycaemia, also known as a hypo, takes place when the blood glucose levels of people with diabetes drop too low. They can feel shaky, unwell and, in extreme cases, can slip into a coma.
According to results from the latest National Diabetes Inpatient Audit, which took place in 2019 and published in 2020, around one in six hospital beds are occupied by a person with diabetes.
Professor Gerry Rayman, the national clinical lead for the audit, has recorded a 30-percent reduction in severe hypoglycaemia in hospitals, with Hypo Awareness Week helping to raise awareness annually since 2012.
Last year, a total of 456 sites, the majority of which were hospitals, across the country took part in Hypo Awareness Week.
