Increasing practice staff engagement

Having the support and engagement of key staff members will have a positive impact in terms of strengthening the embedding process for your DESMOND service. This can include staff on different levels of your local healthcare organisations; practice staff are often the first face that patients see. Below are some ideas for increasing engagement with them.

Although not all staff in the practice will be able to refer patients to diabetes education, they are key to building relationships with patients and are especially helpful in providing a joined-up/consistent view on patient care.

Ideas for engaging practice staff

• Provide a quarterly newsletter to keep them abreast of the work

• Arrange a 30-minute lunchtime/post-closure meeting (could be virtual or in-person) to show a brief overview of the content and style of the programme

• Develop a video

• Set up and provide an updated reference folder to each practice – this could be completed electronically

• Ensure a constant supply of promotional posters and leaflets are available at each practice

• Ensure all practice staff are aware of the self-referral process for patients

Further information for practices on ensuring referrers get the most from their conversations with patient can be found here.