The latest National Diabetes Audit has shown that sixty per cent of the 1.42 million people with diabetes in England included in the Audit do not receive all the care recommended for their condition.
The fifth national audit, carried out by The NHS Information Centre in 2007/08 and funded and commissioned by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP), also shows people with diabetes are more likely to have complications if they live in certain parts of the country or have a more socially deprived background.
People with Type 1 diabetes or Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY) were also found to be less likely than those with Type 2 diabetes to receive any of the nine care processes recommended by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).
Just over 90 per cent of people with Type 2 diabetes received a BMI, blood pressure or blood sugar (HbA1c) check, compared to just over 80 per cent of people with Type 1 diabetes and just over 70 per cent of people with MODY diabetes.
However, the increase in those who did receive all nine care processes, 40 per cent in 2007/08, is significantly more compared to five years ago, when 6.5 per cent of patients received all nine care processes.
The audit also found wide variation in meeting care targets across England's 152 primary care trusts (PCTs). For example, glucose control and blood pressure targets are achieved for 50 per cent more people with diabetes in some PCTs compared to others.
The executive summary of the audit, can be accessed at www.ic.nhs.uk/nda from July 1st along with the paediatric National Diabetes Audit report.
Data for the 2008/09 NDA is already being collected.