NNUH Diabetes Nurse Wins Top Disease Management Award

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital diabetes nurse Esther Walden has won a prestigious Health & Social Care award at a ceremony in Birmingham last night.

Esther Walden and the diabetes team at NNUH have developed an innovative new diabetes-nursing role and were short listed from more than 1,500 entries for the Chronic Disease Management category of the Midlands and East Anglia regional final. 

Last night she beat off strong competition from a Dermatology team from Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham; a Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) team from Walsall Hospitals and a Parkinson Disease Specialist Nurse from Herefordshire Primary Care Trust.

The judges said that Esther’s work was “an excellent example of good practice for others to follow”.  Esther's work now goes on to the national final of the Health and Social Care awards in London on July 7th.

Esther’s role is to identify patients with diabetes who have in-patient treatment and to work with them and staff to ensure their diabetes is well controlled and does not delay their discharge from hospital.

Her work has seen the length of stay for in-patients with diabetes in some areas (especially surgery) drop from 4.3 days to just 2.73 days.  Her work has seen improved patient satisfaction and also saves the hospital up to 2,750 bed days a year by avoiding delayed patient discharge. 

The new role was initially funded by the Norwich and Norfolk Diabetes Trust and has been so successful, it is now funded by the NHS.

Media contacts:  Andrew Stronach or Hayley Gerrard on 01603 287200