University Hospital delivers expert advice to USA visitors

A team representing the USA REACH Programme (Racial and Ethnic Approach to Community Health) visited clinicians in the Warwickshire Institute for the Study of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism (WISDEM) at University Hospital to learn more about care the Trust provides for those with diabetes.

Diabetes is a growing problem for both countries and as part of a learning exchange programme; representatives from the USA and UK are sharing best practice about a variety of health issues.

Coventry has one of the highest rates of obesity in the UK, leading to more and more people developing diabetes. The American Diabetes Association found in a study (published in January 2011) that 25.8 million adults and children in the US have diabetes which equates to 8.3% of the population.

Chief Medical Officer, Meghana Pandit said: “This visit has been a great opportunity to share best practice for treating patients with diabetes. Our American visitors have provided an interesting insight in how they manage the growing number of patients with diabetes.

“They thoroughly enjoyed the visit and we hope that they can put into practice examples of excellent work at UHCW when they get back to America.”

During their visit the USA delegates were given a tour of the WISDEM centre and the Human Metabolism Unit at University Hospital led by lead clinicians Professor Sudhesh Kumar and Dr Harpal Randeva.

WISDEM is a flagship centre tackling diabetes and metabolic conditions. The institute aims to help improve the care of individuals with diabetes and other hormonal illnesses through excellence in clinical care, education and research. The centre provides 20 specialist clinical services, as well as research and teaching activities in partnership with Warwick Medical School.

Furthermore, UHCW together with Warwick Medical School last year launched Europe’s most advanced Whole Body Calorimeter facility last July. The Human Metabolism Unit facility is dedicated to finding solutions for the 1 in 4 UK adults classed as obese.

The Whole Body Calorimeter allows researchers from both Warwick Medical School and UHCW to understand more about how food, physical activity and other behavioural aspects, such as sleep, affect our ability to control our weight, as well as investigating real-time changes in metabolic function associated with diabetes, obesity and their treatments.

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NOTES TO EDITORS

Picture captions:

Top: Meghana Pandit, Chief Medical Officer (centre in pink suit) with members of the USA REACH team.

Bottom: Image from the Human Metabolism Research Unit