Digital Transformation of a Multidisciplinary Diabetes Foot Service in South Derbyshire, UK

Abstract Body: South Derbyshire has a well-established, integrated multidisciplinary diabetes foot team (MDFT) service. The service was facing increasing pressures from growing demand and challenges with capacity, both factors significantly affecting patient experience and service access. There were a number of barriers to increasing outpatient capacity due to availability of health care professionals, clinical space and the high costs associated with this type of service expansion. A new model of care was developed to release capacity in acute clinics and support care closer to home for patients. A proven digital wound imaging and data management system was deployed as a technology enabler to support digital transformation of the integrated MDFT service. Patients can now be seen in community clinics, led by Podiatrists, close to the patient’s home. Escalation and de-escalation of care is facilitated with remote access to real time diabetes foot ulcer assessment data. The results achieved so far include: •Improved communication across the pathway to support improvements in patient care and experience; •15% more community appointments completed for patients to receive care close to home, from baseline, contributing to a reduced cost of service delivery per patient; •The acute MDFT is now able to manage appointments for new and higher risk patients at a faster rate due to the reduced bottleneck in the acute clinics; •85% of patients advised that the technology has increased their confidence in the care that they receive; •Over 70% of patients feel better informed about their foot care. Key Learnings Clinical leadership to drive the project was critical to the success of the initiative. Also important was continuous staff engagement to ensure effective change management. Staff feedback was also gathered via surveys to inform plans. Developing a new model of care and deploying new technology took time and due consideration.