Annual Tech & Talk Event: A Deep Dive into Diabetes Care Innovations
The annual Diabetes Tech & Talk event was held on Dharawal land at the Macarthur Clinical School, Campbelltown Hospital on 1 June, marking notable successes in the field of diabetes care. This year’s event was headlined by a captivating keynote from Dr. Bill Polonsky, President of the Behavioural Diabetes Institute in San Diego, California. Dr. Polonsky engaged attendees with insightful strategies for using empathy for our patients, setting a patient-centric tone for the day.
The event featured four focused sessions: Peer Support & Prevention, Clinical Management, Clinical Technology, and Integrated Diabetes Care. Each session delved into critical aspects of diabetes care, providing a platform for thought leaders and practitioners to share their expertise and experiences.
A highlight of the day was the fourth session, chaired by SPHERE’s Executive Director, Professor Chris White. In this session, Professor David Simmons showcased SPHERE'S impactful work in translating Diabetes research into clinical management and described the journey of the Integrated Diabetes Care Action Group, a movement that the SPHERE DOMS theme began in 2018. This group has been instrumental in identifying a crucial service and policy gap: the need to transform diabetes care delivery through better integration between primary and specialist care.
In response to this challenge, the group established the Diabetes Case Conference as their top priority. This innovative approach involves a group consultation with a General Practitioner, Endocrinologist, Diabetes Educator, and the patient to collaboratively develop a personalised care plan and monitor the patient’s progress. This model of diabetes case conferencing has since been implemented and adapted by various Local Health Districts (LHDs), demonstrating its effectiveness and scalability.
Building on this success, the team engaged in statewide consultations and forged partnerships with NSW Health, the Agency for Clinical Innovation (ACI), and Primary Health Networks. These efforts culminated in the creation of the Statewide Initiative for Diabetes Management in 2022, a testament to the power of collaborative efforts in driving systemic change in healthcare.
“Acknowledging my professional bias as an endocrinologist, it is particularly pleasing to see David’s team develop and deliver comprehensive evidence-based change to the way diabetes is managed in Western Sydney. Coupled with SPHERE’s sponsorship of case-based learning for GPs and Early-Mid Career clinicians and researchers on ECHO platforms I can confidently declare SPHERE to be at the forefront of leading systemic change to health care and its delivery in community and primary care settings,” SPHERE's Executive Director, Professor Chris White said.
The Tech & Talk event not only highlighted groundbreaking initiatives in diabetes care but also reinforced the importance of continued innovation and cooperation among healthcare professionals.