MADRID, 17 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The little training that people with type 2 diabetes receive on the pathology increases complications and health costs, it is estimated that greater knowledge of diabetes can reduce the costs of pharmacological treatments annually by up to 62%, according to the Spanish Federation of Diabetes (FEDE) and the Spanish Diabetes Society (SED).
Both organizations have presented the campaign ‘Do not turn your back on diabetes’, whose ‘spot’ stars the journalist and television presenter, Sonsoles Ónega, and the report ‘Socio-economic estimates of the lack of care of patients with type 2 diabetes’ .
“59% of people with diabetes claim to have received education about the disease. Which means that almost half had not received this training and are left exposed to the serious consequences of poorly controlled diabetes. Diabetes education must be personalized, individualized and also for family members. People with type 2 diabetes do not have the resources for proper control of their disease “, explains Juan Francisco Perán, president of FEDE.
For this reason, the FEDE denounces the absence of educational programs aimed at disease that help patients to manage their disease individually, which causes complications, deaths and admissions to the emergency room.
“In Spain, about 25,000 people die a year from diabetes and its complications. Of these, between 50% and 80% are due to heart disease and cardiovascular accidents; to which it is added that 80% of cases could be avoided by promoting a healthy lifestyle, of which half of the diagnosed patients do not receive any information “, president of FEDE.
In the same vein, Dr. Antonio Pérez, president of the SED, says that “the lack of training in the patient is key. It is important that they participate in self-management and decision-making about their disease. Type 2 diabetes it requires day-to-day monitoring, despite the fact that the healthcare professional is seen only a few times a year “.
The specialist also points out that information is lacking on the relationship between type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular complications. “The relationship between type 2 diabetes and renal and ocular consequences has become pervasive, but cardiovascular ones have cost more and these complications are the ones that reduce the life expectancy of people with diabetes,” he says.
In addition, Dr. Pérez warns that it is an “uncomfortable” disease in which it is difficult to maintain therapeutic adherence. “Adherence is one of the great problems we face. 50% of patients do not comply with the prescription of drugs. If we transfer this to changes in lifestyle, so important for these patients, adherence is still lower. This element is key. Professionals have not given it importance and there is room for improvement, “he says.
On the other hand, the economic burden of diabetes corresponds to 8.2% of the total health budget, which implies 5,809 million euros per year, of which 2,143 million are due to complications of the disease, according to the Methodological Guide for estimate associated costs of diabetes.
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