Hospitals support Hypo Awareness Week

A total of 126 hospitals across the country are currently taking part in a national campaign to raise awareness of hypoglycaemia.

Hypo Awareness Week 2015, which began on Monday, October 5, and will come to an end on Sunday, October 11, was launched to help inpatient staff recognise and treat symptoms, as well as referring patients to appropriate care teams.

The participating hospital sites received an online resource pack which contained ‘TALK Hypos’ resources aimed at encouraging people with diabetes to discuss hypoglycaemia with their healthcare professionals.

Novo Nordisk was once again the official partner for Hypo Awareness Week.  This year’s focus was on nocturnal hypos as they can have a significant impact on the day-to-day function of people with diabetes.

One study states that 65.8% of people experience at least one night-time hypo a month. Over a third of people with diabetes have never raised the symptoms of night-time hypos with their healthcare professional. A major factor of this can be attributed to patients trying to cope with symptoms overnight and subsequently not seeking medical advice.

Over a fifth (22 per cent) of people with diabetes in hospital will have experienced a largely avoidable hypoglycaemic episode as an inpatient within the past seven days, according to the National Diabetes Inpatient Audit. One in 10 will have experienced a severe hypoglycaemic episode and one in 50 will have required injectable treatment related to that patient due to the severity of the hypoglycaemia.

A new Excellence Award has been introduced this year to showcase, promote and reward innovation during Hypo Awareness Week.