Filenews 27 March 2024 - by Marilena Panayi
Officially in the software of the General Health System, at the end of 2023, 115,000 beneficiaries had recorded diabetes mellitus as a diagnosis in their files. Given the fact that worldwide it is estimated that the number of undiagnosed people with diabetes is very large, experts estimate that the actual number of diabetics in Cyprus is currently approaching 150,000 with their percentage possibly reaching even 12.7%.
Given also the fact that diabetes was recorded in 2021 (493 deaths compared to 379 deaths in 2020) as the fifth cause of death in Cyprus, it leads to the need for targeted treatment of the condition and specialized management of patients.
In this context and as a continuation of the effort to establish registries of chronic patients in the GHS, the Health Insurance Organisation begins within April the process of integrating beneficiaries of the system suffering from diabetes mellitus into a registry.
People with diabetes mellitus, explained to "F" the competent officer of the HIO, Monika Kyriakou, according to the relevant planning, "will be identified/marked, will be included in a registry of chronic diseases and will be divided into five categories:
– people with type 1 diabetes mellitus,
– people with type 2 diabetes mellitus taking insulin,
– people with type 2 diabetes mellitus who do not take insulin,
– women with gestational diabetes and
– people who have diabetes due to another cause (eg medication)".
The compilation of a register of people with diabetes mellitus, said Mrs. Kyriakou, "is very important for the purposes of better monitoring and management of these people, primarily by health professionals, but also for the purpose of evaluating the attributed health services by the HIO. More specifically, the chronic disease registers compiled by the HIO aim to record these patients depending on their condition, to better identify them by the health professionals who manage them, to assess their needs and the health services provided within the GHS, while at the same time they serve the potential needs of differentiating the services they receive in relation to all other beneficiaries. These data, in addition to their use by health professionals and the HIO, can be used by other bodies to develop relevant strategies."
In the case of diabetes mellitus, he added, "and after the necessary consultations with scientific bodies and patient associations, it is not appropriate to proceed to any differentiations regarding the way health services are received in these patients. However, the registration of patients and their distribution into the five specific categories will help us to look more specifically at each of these categories and be able, if appropriate, to promote the necessary changes."
The compilation of the registry of people with diabetes "we plan to start at the end of April and depending on the information collected, we will evaluate any next steps."
Mrs. Kyriacou reminded that "in the previous period, the HIO had proceeded with the compilation of registries for people with thalassemia, cancer patients, people with hyperlipidemia and patients undergoing dialysis." In these cases and after identifying the needs, "we proceeded to the necessary changes aiming to facilitate the receipt of the services provided for some of these groups. For example, cancer patients who are in the process of being treated have direct access to their oncologist without the need for a referral from their personal doctor. Something similar applies to dialysis patients who have direct access to dialysis services, again without the need to issue a referral."
"The creation of a registry is not always the same as the need to differentiate the services provided for each patient group, but it gives the HIO the opportunity to have a clearer picture of the needs of these individuals for future planning purposes."
