‘Marginal’ investment could help 300 diabetes patients avoid amputations

MORE than 300 diabetes patients could be spared the pain of amputation each year if the Health Service Executive (HSE) invested in more footcare specialists, according to doctors who treat the condition.

In addition, the cost of employing 20 additional podiatrists would cost the Exchequer just marginally more than the current cost to the State of carrying out amputations on patients whose diabetes has not been controlled.

A study by the Diabetes Expert Advisory Group (DEAG) estimates that each podiatrist could be employed at a cost per post of €63,452 and equipped at a cost of €15,000. This would bring the total cost for 20 footcare specialists to €1.57 million per annum. Last year 338 amputations involving diabetes patients cost the HSE €1.1m. The cost of one patient with one foot ulcer who was hospitalised for treatment was €30,000.