Medicine by Alexandros G. Sfakianakis: A Report from the Diabetes Professional Care Conference in London

Monday, November 20, 2017

A Report from the Diabetes Professional Care Conference in London

Now in its third year, DPC2017 offered attendees in London an impressive array of presentations, debates, workshops, and networking opportunities. The two-day event at the Olympia featured contributions from over a hundred world experts covering all aspects of diabetes care, and showcased the emerging technologies underpinning tomorrow's healthcare solutions.

The vast program on offer was split into five streams over two days focusing on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diabetes and other associated conditions. The line-up also included dedicated sessions on hypoglycemia and diabetic foot ulcers, with visitors even having the opportunity to experience a "hypo" event first-hand with a virtual reality hypoglycemia simulator.

Keynote speakers guided attendees through both policy and clinical practice achievements before charging the audience with the goals of better future treatment and prevention of diabetes. Further discussions focused on the unique challenges of pediatric and adolescent cases, the importance of genetic factors and obesity, as well as the demands of primary and secondary care pathways for diabetics. A number of practical sessions led by clinical staff also offered insight into tangible improvements in patient experience and treatment effectiveness, for what is so frequently a self-managed condition.

A dedicated start-up company showcase area had cutting edge and emerging technology on display for attendees to sample first-hand. These new innovations tackled improvements in insulin injection, wound repair, personal drug regimen management and diagnostic tools. Conference attendees also sampled new products from the industry's big players, while networking with speakers and thought-leaders throughout the packed two-day schedule.

Interactive workshops discussed best practices in patient management and touched on a number of very relevant areas of change in the field. Presentations covered integrating mobile health platforms and data interpretation, as well as experiences of inventing and adopting new technology in the clinical setting. In particular, the sobering fact that currently around 10% of health spending is dedicated to type II diabetes was confronted in an engaging live debate—where a full spectrum of solutions were grappled with, from early-stage prevention programs to the development of more effective pharmaceuticals.

This year's DPC meeting offered attendees a fantastic overview of the current best practices in diabetic care and introduced exciting innovations in both treatment technology and policy, equally important factors to consider as diabetes rapidly grows in both clinical significance and health system cost.