In line with international trends, the numbers affected by Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is on the rise in Ireland due to increasing levels of obesity and an ageing population. This is seen to have a significant financial burden on Ireland’s healthcare system, as acute reactive hospital-based care will not be sufficient to deal with the burden of chronic diseases, such as diabetes. Recently a new model of integrated care developed by the National Clinical Programme for Diabetes was introduced to improve the quality of care of people with T2DM. This model includes the introduction of a community based ‘integrated’ Diabetes Nurse Specialist (DNS), who supports this care through the management of patients, liaising with other multidisciplinary professionals and engaging in professional education. In total, 30 DNS posts have been implemented across Ireland. My research aims to evaluate ‘integrated’ DNS Nurses in an Irish Healthcare setting, using a patient experience survey.
