MENTAL health professionals in the Bradford area have been working with national charity Diabetes UK to support the emotional and psychological needs of people living with the condition.

Research from the charity found that seven out of 10 people feel overwhelmed by the demands of living with diabetes, significantly affecting their mental and physical health.

The research also uncovered that three quarters of people with diabetes who needed mental health support could not access it.

Clare Howarth, Head of the North of England at Diabetes UK, said: “Emotional and psychological support is a vital part of diabetes care and should be available for anyone who needs it and yet it is so often overlooked. We’re are incredibly grateful to Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust for working with us to raise awareness of the importance of mental health and diabetes in their area.

“We hope that by working together we can ensure that people who need emotional and psychological support across Bradford are able access it.”

Figures released earlier this year show 10.81 per cent of people in Bradford City have had a diabetes diagnosis. In the wider Bradford District 8.45 per cent have been diagnosed with the condition. The national average is 6.9 per cent.

A six-week group course on emotional wellbeing has been developed for people with a diabetes diagnosis in Bradford by Bradford District Care Trust’s MyWellbeing College, a free NHS service which helps people manage everyday problems such as feeling low, having problems sleeping, feeling anxious and experiencing stress.

Kiran Kausar, who has been leading MyWellbeing College’s work to develop and deliver emotional wellbeing courses for people with a range of long-term conditions, said: “As Bradford City has the highest prevalence of diabetes in the UK, we are very keen to support to people dealing with the challenges of this condition.

“We’ve worked closely with Diabetes UK to ensure our content is completely appropriate and our Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) team is fully up to date with the latest information on how the condition impacts mental health.”

The IAPT team helps people access talking therapies as close to home or work as possible. Diabetes UK delivered presentations to MyWellbeing College’s IAPT team and made them aware of the charity’s ‘It’s Missing’ campaign. The campaign aims to ensure everyone is asked how they are feeling as part of every diabetes appointment and a mental health professional with knowledge of diabetes is part of every diabetes care team.

For more information about MyWellbeing College’s emotional wellbeing course for people diagnosed with diabetes in Bradford go to: http://bmywellbeingcollege.nhs.uk/our-courses/courses/diabetes/

For more information about Diabetes UK’s campaign ‘It’s missing: Emotional and mental health support’, go to www.diabetes.org.uk/missing.