Clinic opens to offer specialist treatment to people with type 2 diabetes who have had a heart attack
People with type 2 diabetes more likely to face risk of complications following a heart attack.
A new clinic has been established in Leeds to offer specialist care to people with type 2 diabetes who experienced a heart attack.
Around a quarter of people who suffer a heart attack have type 2 diabetes, and the presence of diabetes increases the risk of death by more than two and a half times when compared to heart attack patients who do not have the condition.
The clinic focuses on reducing cardiovascular (heart) risk in people with diabetes who have recently been discharged from Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust following a heart attack.
It is delivered jointly by the cardiology department at Leeds General Infirmary and the diabetes services at the Trust.
This is a patient-centred approach to reducing that risk, with pharmacist-delivered clinics scheduled for 6-8 weeks after the heart attack.
Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust recently established the innovative cardiometabolic clinic as part of a joint working partnership project with the pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim.
Stephen Wheatcroft, Professor of Cardiometabolic Medicine and Consultant Cardiologist at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “This is an exciting and innovative development, one of the first in the country. Previously, patients with type 2 diabetes presenting with heart issues would have been treated by two separate specialty teams. This is the first time there has been a specific clinic combining the cardiac and diabetes team working together.
“We aim to reduce the risk for patients, with earlier multidisciplinary hospital care, to help discharged patients achieve better diabetes control, through improved medication support and optimisation, reducing the need for further treatment and future hospital stays. Overall, it will mean a better patient experience, with improved monitoring and information about treatment options, along with a reduction in waiting times for review in a specialist clinic.”
In previous arrangements, patients who had experienced a heart attack used to be referred to their GP surgeries for their type 2 diabetes control. However, after one year more than half of patients were found to have worse control.
The new service will explore the barriers to patients taking their medication and look to address the patients’ needs, including education and self-management, and help patients discharged from the clinic to have better type 2 diabetes control and self-management, through using their medication and helping with the reasons they might not take it.
Patients will receive an extended consultation of one hour with the consultant or specialist pharmacist who will optimise both the cardiovascular and diabetes medications. This should reduce waiting times for appointments and the need for multiple consultations.
Several recent studies have demonstrated the protective effects of certain diabetes medications on the heart and circulation.
The clinic will help offer maximum protection by early intervention to reduce risk factors, including glucose control, which often has room for improvement in these individuals.
Dr Rani Khatib, Consultant Pharmacist in Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “This is an exciting new opportunity to deliver a person-centred combined heart and diabetes optimisation service. We will work with people to explore and address their concerns and barriers to taking heart and diabetes medicines, reduce risk of having further complications, achieve better diabetes control, and provide education and better self-management.
“This combined, holistic approach will lower the risk of further health issues for patients and reduce the number of appointments they must attend. This means they are less likely to require unplanned primary care or future hospital admissions. Along with better outcomes for patients this innovative approach should reduce the demand on services – a vital contribution to the NHS during pandemic recovery.”
Robert, 57, a heart attack patient living with type 2 diabetes, said: “I didn’t know having type 2 diabetes had an impact on my heart. Having a clinic that addresses the heart and my diabetes would be great and makes perfect sense.”
Pauline, 83, said “Not having to attend separate clinics and getting my medicines all optimised in one appointment would be good and would save me a lot of time.”
Julie, 63, said “I just had a heart attack and was started on a lot of new medicines. With everything happening in the hospital, it is difficult to remember what people tell you. Knowing I will have a dedicated clinic review to address my individual risk and medicines will make me feel safer when I leave hospital.”
David Wardman, Pharmacist and Clinical Lead for Long-Term Conditions at NHS Leeds Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “This innovative clinic represents an important step forward towards our ambition of creating greater person-centred care that focuses on addressing the whole needs of people rather than treating each condition separately. Heart disease and type 2 diabetes are very closely linked with devastating consequences if not treated optimally. Combining support for these two important areas should mean that people are able to have better conversations about their health and get more tailored support.”
Dr Naj Rotheram, Medical Lead for Partnerships at Boehringer Ingelheim said: “We are proud to support the NHS as it continues to design, deliver and evaluate innovative models of care to enhance patient experience and improve outcomes. We share the goal of this dedicated team at Leeds NHS Trust to ensure patients receive holistic personalised care. This project is one of many that Boehringer Ingelheim is supporting to identify innovative models of care to ensure a sustainable future for the NHS.”
The project is led by Cardiology Consultant Pharmacist, Dr Rani Khatib, with support from Professor of Metabolic Medicine and Consultant in Diabetes and Endocrinology Ramzi Ajjan and Professor of Cardiometabolic Medicine and Consultant Cardiologist Stephen Wheatcroft, with Patricia Lenk - Advanced Clinical Pharmacist - Cardiometabolic medicine
Find out more about type 2 diabetes
Support DRWF by making a donation here
Find out more about DRWF-funded research here
Find out more about DRWF fundraising here
For latest update follow DRWF on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter
To receive the charity’s latest bulletins as they become available, please sign up here
Read DRWF diabetes information leaflets here
Join the Diabetes Wellness Network here
I would like to make a regular donation of
I would like to make a single donation of
There are lots of ways to raise money to support
people living with all forms of diabetes.
Bake, Swim, Cycle, Fly ... Do It For DRWF!
Fundraise with us
Recent News
