Unit of Diabetes

The Diabetes Unit is led by the Clinical Institute of Digestive and Metabolic Diseases and coordinates healthcare, teaching and research activities in the field of diabetes at the Hospital and in its area of influence.

The Functional Diabetes Unit is a transversal structure in which participate around 50 specialists from 14 different Services of the Hospital Clínic,  2 specialists from the External Services Pediatric Endocrinology (Sant Joan de Déu Hospital) and Family and Community Medicine of the 'AISBE.

The current work structure consists of a multidisciplinary Management Committee made up of 11 members of the Unit and 13 active Work Groups, with a manager and coordinator within each group who oversee communication between the Management Committee and the members of the Working Groups.

Work is underway on a Common Command Chart, for the entire Unit ,which, at present, has identified around 8,000 patients who are being followed up at External Consultations in some of the processes linked to the Unit. It is expected that the fact of correctly identifying the patients linked to the Unit will make it possible to evaluate different indicators that are fundamental to improving the current processes.

Each Working Group defines the necessary programs and procedures in each of the different areas. There are programs with a long history at our Center, such as the pancreas transplant program (there are around 15-20 pancreas transplants annually), the diabetes and pregnancy program (each year about 50 women with diabetes are followed pregestationally) and the programs aimed at the application of technology in the field of diabetes (for example, different programs aimed at the implementation of continuous glucose monitoring systems, continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion, hybrid artificial pancreas systems, etc.).

In all these processes, the application of original and specific Therapeutic Education programs of diverse and stepped complexity, adapted for group or individual education, is fundamental.