Diabetes UK’s Chief Executive, Chris Askew (pictured above), explains how the charity’s ambitious new 5-year strategy is setting out to end the harm of diabetes.
Every World Diabetes Day millions of people around the world come together to raise awareness of diabetes. It’s a time to reflect the challenges people affected by diabetes face; to celebrate our shared successes; and to look to a future where the harm from diabetes comes to an end.
Despite progress and achievement over many years, we know that getting the changes that people living with and affected by diabetes want for the future will require urgent action.
Our core ambitions for diabetes
That’s why this World Diabetes Day, we’re excited to share Diabetes UK’s new and ambitious strategy for 2020-2025 – A generation to end the harm.
Over the five years of our last strategy, our supporters and partners have enabled us to achieve a huge amount. But our work together isn’t done until we end the harm diabetes does to millions of people every day.
That means realising our two core ambitions:
- We want people to live well and longer with diabetes, and
- We want to cure or prevent diabetes
Achieving our goals is only possible if we continue influencing at the top level, and learn more from people whose voices are under-represented. The need to adapt and grow in our work is reflected in the five key outcomes, that:
- More people with type 1, type 2 and all other forms of diabetes will benefit from new treatments that cure or prevent the condition.
- More people will be in remission from type 2 diabetes.
- More people will get the quality of care they need to manage their diabetes well.
- Fewer people will get type 2 and gestational diabetes.
- More people will live better and more confident lives with diabetes, free from discrimination.
How will these changes happen?
Delivering these outcomes won’t happen overnight − it requires a step change in resources coming into diabetes and will happen more quickly in some areas than in others. Diabetes of all types still presents an enormous health challenge, and – as we’ve seen all too often – the conversation surrounding it in our society remains divisive, underplayed, and stigmatising. We must change this over the next five years.
Our ambition is bigger than ever before because the challenges and opportunities demand it. We know we can reach our vision, but we can only get there by working with the public, with government and with industry to make change happen.
We know diabetes is relentless, but so are we
Living with diabetes can be so hard – its impact is often devastating to those affected and their families – and delivering change is a complex challenge. But, while we know the task facing us is huge, there is hope now like never before.
Diabetes UK expects to lead the collective effort to making people’s lives healthier, easier, better, longer. We will reduce the harm diabetes does. We know diabetes is relentless. But so are we.
