Glucollector for care homes

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  Exploring the introduction of a digital technology to enhance diabetes care for care home residents with diabetes

• IRAS ID

  276372

• Contact name

  Carla Gianfrancesco

• Contact email

  carla.gianfrancesco@nhs.net

• Sponsor organisation

  Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

• Duration of Study in the UK

  0 years, 7 months, 1 days

• Research summary

  Is a diabetes digital technology known as ‘Glucollector’, an acceptable method of communicating blood glucose levels of residents with diabetes, from care homes to diabetes specialists?

  It is estimated that around one in four residents in UK care homes have diabetes and many need complex care with insulin. Hospital admissions in this group are common but could be reduced with improved care. Work is on-going to meet recommended care home diabetes guidelines.
  
  Support for residents with complex diabetes is provided by Diabetes Specialist Nurses (DSN). They provide advice which keeps residents safe from blood glucose (BG) levels becoming dangerously low or dangerously high. DSNs rely on care home staff to provide results from daily BG monitoring to enable them to do this. However this information is frequently incomplete which delays advice on treatment changes and puts resident safety at risk.

  The study will take place in care homes in Sheffield. The residents would continue to receive care in the usual way. We will introduce a technology which transfers data from the BG meter of the resident, to a website where it can be shared with DSNs. This is known as the Glucollector and will enable DSNs to receive and action BG data promptly and prioritise those most at risk. Ultimately, this could improve diabetes care and reduce hospital admissions.
  
  Homes will be asked to use Glucollector for two months. We plan to do a mixed methods feasibility study to explore recruitment; the practicalities of introducing the technology; and the suitability of the system for the purpose intended. We will collect data on how it was used and ask the opinions of those using the technology through interviews and focus groups. This will help the team to decide on the next steps for the technology.

• REC name

  North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 2 Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  20/NE/0089

• Date of REC Opinion

  16 Mar 2020

• REC opinion

  Favourable Opinion