Transforming Diabetes Care Through Innovation
Project impact
The project generated significant interest from health professionals and people with diabetes, with 275 survey responses, eight interviews, and five workshops to map current projects and identify future innovation opportunities.
Over 30 innovation projects were identified, revealing five challenges in diabetes care: implementation, resourcing, variation in services, integrating user data, and managing expectations.
Future landscape mapping identified seven key thematic challenges in diabetes innovation: individualising care, lifestyles, education, inequalities, mental wellbeing, technology, and flexible care pathways.
Transforming Diabetes Care Through Innovation –mapping the current landscape and identifying future priorities in Scotland
This participatory design led innovation Diabetes project was sponsored by the Scottish Diabetes Group in collaboration with Chief Scientist office. The research undertook a novel, and person-centred approach to identifying innovation priorities and explored the impact of current innovations on the experiences of service users.
Mixed method approaches brought together survey data and user experiences to map current and future state priorities and innovation ideas. and analysis of the current projects live diabetes innovation landscape in Scotland and readiness for scale up.
These insights were all presented in a series of digital maps and have been published as part of the outputs from this work.
Summary
Partners
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Focusing on users' needs in innovation, as highlighted by this research, provides valuable insights into unmet needs and aspirations. Participatory design fosters collaboration, empathy, and a deeper understanding of challenges, leading to more sustainable, scalable solutions.
The research has informed decision-makers in supporting continued investment in diabetes technologies and contributed to future demand work within the Chief Scientist Office Innovation Portfolio. This approach offers a framework for identifying future innovation projects in NHS Scotland.
The research was presented at the National Services Research Conference (July 2024) and won the Best Poster Award at the Digital Health and Care Conference (December 2023).
Impact & value
Following a “round table” session with senior stakeholders a shortened list of priority themes has emerged, and pipeline proposals are in development within DHI. Research outputs published in November 2024.
Progress to date
Staff related to the project
Next steps
