Diabetes UK launches new tool to help nurses tackle stigma

A new awareness tool aimed at helping nurses and other healthcare professionals tackle diabetes stigma has been launched by a leading charity.

Diabetes UK has launched the ‘BLAME-aware’ tool which is designed to help healthcare professionals recognise and avoid language that can contribute to diabetes stigma during appointments.

It sets out five common ways diabetes stigma can appear in healthcare settings, using the acronym BLAME – Blaming; Labelling; Assumptions; Misconceptions; and Emphasis – to help staff remember.

According to the charity, research reveals that half of people living with diabetes have missed healthcare appointments because they feared stigma or judgement.

It states that, while often unintentional, the use of stigmatising language around diabetes can leave people feeling blamed and judged, in turn impacting their emotional wellbeing and engagement with healthcare services.

As well as disengagement from healthcare appointments, experiencing diabetes stigma has been linked to lower self-esteem, diabetes distress, symptoms of depression and increasing the risk of serious complications including heart disease, stroke, kidney failure and sight loss.

The new ‘BLAME-aware’ tool

How diabetes stigma can appear in conversations and healthcare settings:

B – Blaming someone for their weight, food choices or glucose levels can lead to feelings of “failure” and disengagement from healthcare. Diabetes is a complex condition with multiple factors contributing to why it develops and how its managed.

L – Labelling people as ‘non-compliant’ or ‘diabetic’ can feel dehumanising, and reduces a person to a condition rather than recognising them as an individual living with diabetes.

A – Assumptions including prejudging someone based on their ethnicity or cultural background can create further obstacles in someone trying to access care that’s right for them.

M – Misconceptions continue to fuel stereotypes. Myths about diabetes ignore the reality of living with a lifelong condition that requires constant management, decision-making and emotional resilience.

E – Emphasis on “’good’ and ‘bad’ diabetes management can leave people feeling unsupported in managing a complex condition. Language that frames diabetes management as pass or fail, risks reinforcing shame rather than encouraging support and engagement.

Source: Diabetes UK

Diabetes UK is promoting its BLAME tool as part of Diabetes Week which started on 8 June.

The charity’s stigma campaigns lead Hannah Greer said: ‘For far too many people with diabetes, managing their physical health is only part of the challenge.

‘Diabetes stigma is everywhere – in media headlines, in online comments and even from friends and family.

‘It’s so important that healthcare professionals don’t add to the emotional toll of diabetes.

‘Through our new BLAME-aware tool, we want to help healthcare professionals better understand how small changes to language can make a big difference to people with diabetes.

‘Language matters, and it’s so important we encourage conversations that are rooted in compassion, respect and support.’

Diabetes UK has urged healthcare professionals to display the tool in professional settings.