Specialise in diabetes care and research? Here’s why you need our new type 2 diabetes experience

More people than ever are living with type 2 diabetes, but not everyone receives the care and support they need to live well. Our new, immersive experience, which we’re delighted to officially launch today, aims to tackle this issue by sparking a greater ‘patient obsessed’ mindset among healthcare and pharma.

We know from speaking to people with type 2 diabetes that a key barrier is that many healthcare professionals don’t understand how difficult it can be to change your lifestyle so dramatically in the wake of a diagnosis. 

We need our healthcare system to become better at understanding the impact this condition has on every part of a person’s life. It needs to be an obsession for pharma and healthcare alike.

Why being ‘patient obsessed’ is the only way to improve care

Patient-centred care is widely considered best practice, with proven benefits in improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs, but uptake is variable. 

A recent study found that healthcare students have a generally low attitude towards patient-centred care. This is echoed by previous studies that have highlighted inconsistencies among clinicians in practising patient-centred care.

However, a better understanding of the pressures typically felt by young people with diabetes could help to overcome barriers to good care, particularly in England where children and young people tend to miss more diabetes healthcare appointments than other age groups. 

Currently, of the 1,570 young people aged under 19 in England who are living with type 2 diabetes, only three in 10 are getting the care they need to live well with their condition.

A Life in a Day of a patient with type 2 diabetes

Our immersive type 2 diabetes experience provides a unique opportunity to get under the skin of what it really means to live with this condition. 

As with all our experiences, we have worked hand-in-hand with patients to develop an experience that reflects the day-to-day reality of living with this condition. It allows participants to walk in the shoes of a type 2 diabetes patient for one day, providing a unique insight into how it affects people physically, emotionally, professionally and socially. 

Putting patients at the heart of healthcare is the only way to develop and deliver effective services, treatment and support. When done well, it not only benefits patients but also the healthcare team and wider health system.

We hope our new experience will support teams across healthcare and pharma to become much more patient obsessed and subsequently improve lives through the delivery of better, more patient-centred care.