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• Prevalence studies show that the increase in the number of people with physical and sensory impairment amongst adults aged 18-64 over the next 20 years will not be significant, though this may be affected by social life-style changes, for example, higher levels of alcohol consumption and an increase in obesity, that lead to more people being affected by long term conditions.

• Produce service specifications for diabetes service delivery and for diabetic retinal screening;
• Market test and re-commission a new service in line with the specification;
• Continue to work with the retinal screening service provider to ensure the monitoring systems in place provide an accurate reflection of the level of screening work undertaken;
• Effectively monitor the implementation of the retinal screening pathways to ensure patients have access to the most appropriate level of intervention;

The NHS health checks programme has been introduced across North of Tyne and will be available for all eligible individuals aged 40-74 years of age. The programme is expected to identify and manage people at risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and kidney disease. It is anticipated that this programme will have the potential to identify individuals at risk of diabetes and through proactive management and lifestyle intervention provide significant benefits to their future health.

• National Service Framework (NSF) for Diabetes
• NICE guidance  
• Department of Health - High Quality Care For All  

• Greater understanding of the issues for frequently overlooked groups;
• Take up rates for current patient education models and identification of cost effective models for delivery of patient education to housebound and frequently overlooked groups;
• Currently QOF data are only available on an annual basis.  However, opportunities to monitor the data more frequently are currently being explored;

Diabetes has been highlighted by the Department of Health as one of biggest healthcare challenges facing the NHS.  It is one of the common endocrine diseases affecting all age groups and is becoming increasingly common.  

Prevalence - trends and forecast