MP Jim Fitzpatrick is calling for an end to “the scandal of preventable diabetes-related foot amputations.”
Thousands of “unnecessary amputations” are carried out each year, he says.
So the Poplar & Limehouse MP has signed a pledge backing a campaign for better diabetes care.
He attended a Parliamentary reception held by the Diabetes UK charity, the College of Podiatry and NHS Diabetes to launch the ‘feet first’ campaign aimed at reducing amputations by half within the next five years.
“The fact that people with diabetes are enduring unnecessary amputations is a scandal,” the MP said.
“Amputations are hugely traumatic—many people die within a few years of having them.
“I am backing the call to get this issue raised in Parliament to make sure patients get the best care.”
Diabetes sufferers are 20 times more likely to have a limb amputation, with 100 diabetes-related amputations carried out each week in Britain, NHS figures reveal. Yet 80 per cent could have been prevented, say campaigners.
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