Portsmouth diabetes nurses helped with new tool that improves patient care and safety

The tool – known as C.R.A.S.H. (chronic kidney disease, risk of frailty, amputations, steroids, hypo/hyperglycaemia) – helps community nurses at Solent NHS Trust who are caring for patients requiring insulin to identify issues and concerns quickly, resulting in prompter and safer treatment.

The device won an award from The Wessex Academic Health and Science Network as part of World Patient Safety Day.

Specialist diabetes nurse at the trust, Emma Ives said: ‘The C.R.A.S.H. tool is a fantastic innovation that really helps to improve patient care and safety for those housebound patients who do not have access to care within GP surgeries or hospitals.

'It allows us to quickly identify concerns quickly, which helps prevent delays in treatment changes and development in diabetes-related complications.

'It also has helped to stop the risk of hypoglycaemic events and subsequent falls or other health events.'

The tool is designed to assist housebound patients and can aid those suffering from either type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

Nurses operating the tool use a scoring system to establish if there have been changes in the patient’s health that could impact their diabetes control.

If the score passes a certain level, the patient's GP would be informed and the Diabetes Team will be alerted.

It has been designed to enhance current nurse reviews and prioritise patient referrals to the current diabetes service.