CALLS have been made for more to be done to prevent diabetes as the spiralling cost of new medicines rose to more than £13m in Dorset last year.

Figures released by NHS Digital reveal that the net ingredient cost (nic) of all diabetes-related prescription items soared to £13,198,500 in the county in the last financial year.

Around six per cent of Dorset residents – around 21,000 people – suffer from diabetes. One in every 25 items prescribed by Dorset CCG is related to diabetes, but one pound in every 10 of the overall net ingredient cost budget is spent on diabetes medicine.

A spokesman for Dorset CCG said the ‘relatively high’ cost of the treatment is, in part, due to a number of new drugs.

The service is looking to create a new model which it says will bring care closer to home and provide better value.

Nationally £967.7m is spent on diabetes prescriptions – 10.6 per cent of the total cost of all prescribing in primary care and almost double the cost of a decade ago, when it was £513.9m, or 6.6 per cent of the overall spend.

Cases of diabetes have been rising in Dorset and nationwide for several years, and there are fears many people could be living with the condition undiagnosed.

A report by Public Health England last year found that people in Dorset have the second highest risk of type two diabetes, which is linked to obesity and unhealthy lifestyles.

According to the report, 13.4 per cent of people are at risk.

Robin Hewings, Diabetes UK head of policy, said: “This report shows the effect that the soaring number of people diagnosed with diabetes is having on the NHS’s bottom line. However, it is important to remember that diabetes medication, such as insulin, is lifesaving, and people with diabetes need their medication to manage their condition well in order to reduce their risk of serious complications such as blindness, amputations and stroke.

“As well as being personally devastating these complications are also extremely costly to the NHS.The health service spends £10 billion every year managing diabetes, and the vast majority of this cost is spent managing potentially avoidable complications. We are spending more on things going wrong than helping people manage their condition well in the first place. This is why preventing cases of type two diabetes, combined with providing people diagnosed with diabetes with prescribed medication and the support and care they need to manage their condition effectively, will help to reduce costs to the NHS in the long term.”

Dorset CCG spent £4,946,383 on insulin, £5,501,130 on antidiabetic drugs and £2,706,016 on diagnostic monitoring equipment in 2015/16.

A spokesman for the CCG said: “In Dorset around six per cent of the population (approximately 21,000 people) are diagnosed with diabetes, which is in line with the national average. The long term side effects of diabetes can lead to further health issues, and locally we have become better at the diagnosis and management which benefits local people who are affected by the condition.

“We do however recognise the limitations of local services. The relatively high cost of treatment is partly due to a number of new drugs which have over the last few years been approved by NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence). These have replaced the older, cheaper medicines and insulins.”

A new model of care for people with diabetes is aiming to increase support and access to services for people with diabetes.

Dr Craig Wakeham, strategic clinical lead for diabetes at NHS Dorset CCG, said the current model which is delivered by six providers is ‘fragmented, highly institutionalised and in some aspects of care, poor value’.

He added: “Alongside this we are not always delivering good patient outcomes and have nearly double the national major amputation rate.”

The Specialist Diabetic Care Service in the new model will offer specialist advice, education and training to health professionals in Primary Care diagnosing and treating people with diabetes as part of their system leadership responsibility. Their expertise will be used to help develop the confidence and competence of other health and social care professionals involved in supporting people with diabetes through working collaboratively to enhance peoples care in the community.

It is expected that 50 per cent of people with type one diabetes and 90 per cent with type two diabetes will have their care provided via virtual or real meetings, telephone and email advice and consultation appointments.

Patients considered more vulnerable, such as those with foot disease or ulcers, associated renal disease or women in the antenatal period will have consultant led care.

For more information visit dorsetccg.nhs.uk