Newly diagnosed?
We understand how daunting it must be to find out that your child has diabetes. It’s important to know that your child will still live a full life with a diagnosis of diabetes, with your help and our support.
The dedicated paediatric diabetes team at Chelsea and Westminster is one that will support your family and your child in the medical management of diabetes, as well as providing psychological support to help your family come to terms with the condition.
We will provide your family and your child with the education to live a healthier life, and we can also provide education for their teachers, too.
Your care as an inpatient
When your child has just been diagnosed they will need to stay in hospital so that the team can stabilise their glucose levels and make sure there haven’t been any medical complications.
During your child’s stay on the ward you and they will learn the basics of diabetes management. This will give you the knowledge and information to manage diabetes at home. You cannot expect to know everything about diabetes to begin with and the diabetes team will continue to support you.
Goals during inpatient stay:
- Understanding diagnosis
- Injection technique
- Understanding of insulin regimens and how they relate to food intake
- Dietetic assessment and advice including carbohydrate counting
- Hypoglycaemia treatment
Discharge process
When your child’s condition has stabilised and they are ready to leave hospital, we will book them into an outpatient appointment within two weeks after leaving hospital. Routine clinic appointments are offered every three months, but if your child is newly diagnosed or you are finding it difficult to control your child’s diabetes, you will be seen more frequently.
It’s really important that your child attends all their scheduled appointments. By doing this, we will manage their condition better, which will mean that they can return to normal life and avoid other stays in hospital.