Diabetes (children)
What we do
Our service at Chelsea and Westminster specialises in the diagnosis and treatment of children with diabetes and works together with our children’s endocrinology service. We have close links with schools and run training sessions for school staff. Most of our patients have a personalised school care plan. We run a weekly diabetes clinic in our children’s Outpatients Department. Our team can assess whether patients are suitable to transfer to insulin pump therapy and our specialist nurse provides ongoing individual support for this treatment—around a third of our patients are on insulin pump therapy. We also provide a 24-hour diabetes helpline for patients and staff which is staffed by senior members of the diabetes team.
At West Middlesex, our children’s diabetes team provides integrated multidisciplinary care to children with diabetes until 18 years of age. We are part of the Southeast Coast and London Diabetes network and have consistently met best practice tariff guidelines since 2012 when the service started. We are recognised by our network as an excellent service.
Our team provides personalised care to young people with diabetes by delivering:
- Inpatient care at diagnosis on our children’s ward
- Structured education by the specialist team at the time of diagnosis
- Training for nursery and schoolteachers by specialist nurses
- Training and teaching for nurses who look after children in A&E and the ward to give a consistently high standard of care
- Regular training and teaching for junior doctors caring for children with diabetes at presentation and thereafter
- Insulin pumps, continuous glucose monitors and closed loop system as per NICE guidelines
- Designated outpatient clinics for children with diabetes
- 24-hour access to emergency advice shared by the diabetes team at our Chelsea site
We are actively involved in diabetes audits and research.
Our team
The Chelsea and Westminster team includes consultants, a diabetes specialist nurse and a paediatric dietician. The clinical lead for the service is Dr Nicola Bridges (Consultant Paediatric Endocrinologist).
At West Middlesex, the team includes consultants Dr Jayanti Rangasami and Dr Archana Kshirsagar, specialist diabetes nurses, a diabetes dietician, psychologist, administrator and research nurse.
Contact
Chelsea and Westminster Hospital
Children’s Outpatients
1st Floor, Lift Bank D
Adult Outpatients (for monthly transition clinic)
Lower Ground Floor, Lift Bank C
T: 020 3315 8695
West Middlesex University Hospital
Children’s Outpatients
3rd Floor
T: 020 8321 5424