A focus on the 2023 DESMOND Team & Educator of the Year: Find out what makes them so successful
The South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust (SEHSCT) in Northern Ireland has been delivering the DESMOND education programme to local people living with, or at risk of, type 2 diabetes since 2012.
We asked the DESMOND team at SEHSCT how they have made their DESMOND service successful.
1. How to maximise course delivery amidst demanding clinical commitments.
In the beginning, Diabetes Specialist Nurses (DSNs) and Diabetes Specialist Dietitians (DSD) were trained, and they used a joint delivery model within the existing staff resources. In 2019, additional investment was made to introduce a Diabetes Assistant (DA) DESMOND educator to the service. With the help of the DA, the course delivery was remodelled, increasing the annual capacity from 21 courses to 42 courses per year. Now, each course is delivered by the DA and either a DSD or a DSN. The DA not only co-delivers all courses but is also responsible for coordinating pre- and post-course administration, room bookings, Zoom bookings, and setting up/taking down course materials and room layout. By delegating these tasks, DSD and DSN clinical time has been freed up to provide complex direct patient care.
This transformative DA post was filled by Christopher Henry from 2021 until August 2023. He won the DESMOND Award in 2023 for Educator of the Year. Christopher’s colleagues described him as “extremely dedicated to diabetes education and self-management. He is a skilled educator who delivers DESMOND in a professional, friendly, and compassionate manner. All our DESMOND educators enjoy delivering the sessions with him.”
2. Streamline the process for managing bookings.
The team has been working hard for the past four years to streamline the administration and booking processes for their DESMOND service. As a result of their efforts, the management of their waiting list has significantly improved. In 2019, the team centralised the booking activity to their central booking office and introduced a partial booking process. After receiving an invitation letter, patients can now book their preferred course via telephone. This process has led to an increase in attendance rates.
The partial booking process is a reliable way to manage the waiting list, with the ability to track wait times for patients. It also provides easier data reporting on uptake rates, non-response rates, and patterns of referrals from local GP practices. The team utilises the data to plan the future delivery of the service and to specifically target Desmond programmes in areas with higher referral rates.
3. Put participants’ needs at the centre.
The SEHSCT team puts participants at the centre of everything they do to get the most out of the courses for everyone involved. The introduction of additional evening and weekend courses ensures all participants have the best range of options available to enable them to attend.
During the pandemic, the team quickly adapted to the virtual course delivery method to support participants to stay connected with their healthcare professionals. When restrictions were lifted, the team safely re-established face-to-face delivery to meet the needs of those less confident with the virtual platforms.
Following a scoping exercise where the team listened to feedback from participants, they now offer a 60:40 split of face-to-face and virtual courses. As the team covers a wide geographical area, they ensure that locations offered for face-to-face courses are spread across the four localities and easily accessible to participants.
Kate Jenkinson, Advanced Practice Diabetes Dietitian, said: “We always do what we can to ensure everyone has an equal opportunity to avail themselves of the courses. As a team, we pride ourselves on working well together, with the more experienced educators supporting the newer educators.”
Kate’s top tip for delivering a successful DESMOND service:
“Listening to feedback from participants who attend the service, trying to make the service inclusive as much as possible and carrying out a scoping exercise to see what would make the service run more smoothly to help maximise delivery.”
Here are some examples of some of the positive feedback the educators at SEHSCT received after delivering a DESMOND course:
“The staff were friendly and professional and made me feel comfortable and was able to relax.”
“Absolutely fantastic programme, full of information and delivered in a way that everyone understands. The activities and visuals were excellent and cover everyone’s learning style.”
“I found the DESMOND course very informative. The Health Professionals were very knowledgeable. Doing this course has made me feel more positive and I am leaving the course with a better mental attitude.”
“The facilitators were knowledgeable and accommodating. I felt safe in the group and totally supported and encouraged to chat about my relationship with diabetes. I now feel that I can cope with diabetes and that I can fit family life and everyday life around it and keep healthy. I learned so much about others’ experiences which were similar to mine, and I felt a real part of the group.”