Editorial

Structured education for people with type 2 diabetes

BMJ 2008; 336 doi: 10.1136/bmj.39478.693715.80 (Published 28 February 2008)
Cite this as: BMJ 2008;336:459

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  1. Sean F Dinneen, senior lecturer in medicine
  1. 1Department of Medicine, Clinical Science Institute, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
  1. sean.dinneen@nuigalway.ie

    A step towards a more patient centred approach to delivery of care

    Effective self management is the cornerstone of good care for people with diabetes. High quality structured education that prepares people for a lifetime with the condition is a key enabler of self management. The term structured education programme was defined by a patient education working group in 2005 (box).1 A good example of such a programme for patients with type 1 diabetes is the DAFNE (dose adjustment for normal eating) programme,2 which has been endorsed by National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance.3

    Key criteria of a structured education programme

    • A clear underlying philosophy on which the programme is based

    • A structured written curriculum

    • Trained educators familiar with the programme and its delivery

    • A quality assurance system applied to the structure, process, content, and delivery of the programme

    • A process of audit of programme outcomes including biomedical, psychosocial, and patient experience

    High quality trials of structured education for people with type 2 diabetes in the United Kingdom have been …

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