InfoforwellbeingIntroductory video developed by Diabetes Scotland for library services.
Duration: 5 minutes
Supporting resources
What is diabetes? 2 minute animation from Diabetes UK
Diabetes symptoms 2 minute animation from Diabetes UK
Diabetes prevention and self management
317128 people in Scotland have diabetes, representing 5.8% of the population. According to current trends, by 2035 more than 480,000 people in Scotland will be living with diabetes. (Scottish Diabetes Survey 2020.)
The resources in this section have been compiled to support libraries to participating in the Collective Force for Health and Wellbeing pathfinder with Diabetes Scotland. This pathfinder aims to develop a central role for libraries in their communities in:
1) Helping people living with diabetes to self-manage, live well with the condition and make informed choices about their health and wellbeing.
2) Enabling people at risk of developing type 2 diabetes to access support and accredited resources that will reduce their risk of developing the condition.
3) Addressing the inequalities which affect people’s risk of diabetes and their outcomes when the condition develops. Sources of inequality include: ethnicity, socioeconomic background; digital inequality.
The Know Your Risk 
tool provided by Diabetes UK aims to help individuals find out their risk of developing Type 2 diabetes within the next ten years. The tool is evidence-based and was developed in collaboration with the University of Leicester and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust.
Know Your Risk consists of seven simple questions related to age, gender, ethnicity, family history, waist measurement (Library staff may wish to have a tape measure available for service users!), Body Mass Index and blood pressure. It uses a points system to identify if a person is at low, increased, moderate or high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Based on this score, advice is provided in the form of lifestyle changes or a GP referral.
The tool is suitable for any one over the age of 18 except pregnant women. It is particularly useful for people who:
- are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups (who are at increased risk of diabetes)
- are from socially deprived groups who are at greater diabetes risk and less likely to access local healthcare services.
Video - how to use the Know Your Risk tool
This 4 minute video has been created specially for library staff participating in the Collective Force diabetes pathfinder.
Know Your Risk from dhiscotland on Vimeo.
The Diabetes UK Learning Zone provides videos, quizzes and interactive tools with tasty food swaps and tips for managing diabetes day-to-day. The resources are tailored to the profile the user sets when they register, which includes their health and ethnicity details.
The first video below walks library staff through how to use the Diabetes UK Learning Zone. This will help you to support library users in getting the most out of the site.
The second video is a 2 minute introduction from Diabetes UK, aimed at the general public. You may find this useful in introducing people to the site and how it can help them.
When library staff are creating a username to explore the Learning Zone, please add the word ‘TEST.’ This will enable Diabetes UK to exclude library staff use of the platform from evaluation purposes. Library staff are advised to sign in as Healthcare Professionals. This will enable you to change your profile – type of diabetes – and will provide a good overview of how the platform adapts to different users.
Video for library staff - how to use the Diabetes UK Learning Zone
Duration 8 mins
Diabetes Learning Zone from dhiscotland on Vimeo.
Introductory video for the general public (Duration 2min 13s)
Regions and Nations (Patients version) from Diabetes UK on Vimeo.
Understanding Diabetes is is a 90 minute module that can be completed at a time to suit individuals.
It is an optional training module for library staff who want to undertake more in-depth learning about diabetes. You will need to register to access the module. You will be asked what your role is – please put ‘other’ and record your role there.