USE OF HEALTH SERVICES

As diabetes is a chronic condition, people with diabetes use a variety of health services for diagnosis, advice, treatment and control of any associated complications [13].

A quarter of people with diabetes saw a general practitioner (GP) at least once a month (25%) for their condition, and around 2% saw a medical specialist as frequently. Overall, 88% of people with diabetes saw a GP at least once in the past year for their condition (slightly more than the national average of 81%), while 27% saw a specialist (Graph 9). Almost four out of five people with diabetes (77%) had discussed some form of self management of their condition with a GP or specialist in the last year.