We could be underestimating the number of people living with diabetes by up to 35 per cent.

For a long time we've been using data from the National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS) to estimate prevalence – and to make decisions about diabetes healthcare.

But not everybody with diabetes signs up to this scheme.

This disparity in numbers casts doubt on the assertion that the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is trending down.

Guest/s

• Dr Alice Gibson, Research Fellow at the Leeder Centre for Health Policy, Economics and Data at the University of Sydney

References

• Is the burden of diabetes in Australia underestimated? Comparison of diabetes ascertainment using linked administrative health data and an Australian diabetes registry
• National Disability Services Scheme