Leicester diabetes education firm triumphs in national industry awards

An NHS organisation that delivers training programmes to healthcare professionals to improve their care and knowledge in diabetes has won a prestigious national award for excellence.

Effective Diabetes Education Now (EDEN) was named the winner of the Healthcare Professional and Patient Education prize at the inaugural Industry Awards launched by Diabetes Professional Care (DPC).

The awards were held in association with The Diabetes Times, the leading dedicated news source for diabetes healthcare professionals.

The ceremony took place after day one of the conference at Olympia London on the evening of Wednesday 14 November which was World Diabetes Day.

Laura Willcocks, EDEN’s Senior Education and Research Associate, said: “Our programmes are being implemented nationally and internationally and we are proud to provide teams and organisations with the opportunity to transform diabetes care by enhancing the skill levels of staff involved in diabetes treatment. This in turn leads to improved outcomes for people with diabetes. We are a team of clinicians, academics and specialists in education. This means we can provide a unique portfolio of experience, credibility and up-to-date evidence base.”

EDEN is based at the Leicester Diabetes Centre, also the home of the Leicester Changing Diabetes programme. The initiative, a partnership programme with Novo Nordisk and the Leicester Diabetes Centre based at Leicester General Hospital, was highly commended in the Prevention Product of the Year category.

It is part of the global initiative Cities Changing Diabetes, launched in response to the dramatic rise of diabetes within urban areas.

Professor Melanie Davies CBE, Director of the Leicester Diabetes Centre and Professor of Diabetes Medicine at the University of Leicester, said: “The team deserve to be Highly Commended as they work very hard raising awareness of type 2 diabetes and what a serious condition it is. Leicester Changing Diabetes is about showing people how they can help themselves reduce their chances of developing the condition, which can be devastating, before it’s too late.

“As part of the Leicester Changing Diabetes programme we are continually seeking new ways to introduce healthier lifestyles to people in a bid to drive down type 2 diabetes numbers, as we already know the condition is associated with poor diet and lack of activity.”

The awards showcased success and innovation across the industry including pharmaceutical, medical device and life sciences industries working in diabetes care.

Maggie Meer, who founded DPC, said: “Congratulations to EDEN, the award is testament to their hard work, dedication, innovation and, more importantly, the life-changing difference they are making to people with diabetes. We launched the awards to recognise the crucial role played by industry in developing and providing products, services and research that enable people with diabetes to have better outcomes.”

Launched in 2015, DPC has fast become the UK’s leading conference for healthcare professionals working in the field. This year it attracted more than 4,000 delegates.

Oliver Jelley, editor of The Diabetes Times, said: “These awards are about celebrating the achievements, standards of excellence and commitment to quality and positive outcomes of the companies working in diabetes care. We were proud to be part of this positive initiative and congratulate EDEN for going above and beyond to improve diabetes care.”

Entries into the 14 categories were judged independently by leading professionals from the diabetes community, including chair of the Association of British Clinical Diabetologists (ABCD) and Consultant in Diabetes and Endocrinology Dr Dinesh Nagi, Abigail Kitt, who is Quality Improvement Lead (Diabetes), NHS England – South East Clinical Networks, and Sarah Bone, Chief Executive of Diabetes Research & Wellness Foundation (DRWF).

DPC is a free-to-attend, CPD-accredited event for healthcare professionals involved in the prevention, treatment and management of diabetes and its related conditions.