Confidence gap in community specialist diabetes nurses and general practice nurses in navigating diabetes technology

Since the publication of the National Institute for Care and Health Excellence's TA943 guidance, the uptake of continuous glucose monitoring and hybrid closed loop systems in type 1 diabetes care is expanding rapidly. Community diabetes specialist nurses and general practice nurses are both integral to implementing these technologies outside of hospital settings.

To explore and understand the confidence levels, training and support available to community diabetes specialist nurses and general practice nurses in relation to continuous glucose monitoring and hybrid closed loop systems technologies, based on a national service evaluation.

A national survey was distributed to UK nurses and midwives in May 2025. Confidence was measured across five continuous glucose monitoring and hybrid closed loop systems domains, with qualitative feedback analysed thematically.

Community diabetes specialist nurses showed moderate to high confidence with continuous glucose monitoring and variable confidence with hybrid closed loop systems. General practice nurses reported low confidence across all domains, with minimal access to formal training. Differences in support structures and team composition contributed to capability gaps.

Tailored training, system-wide support and commissioning reform are needed to ensure equitable technology-enabled diabetes care across community and primary care settings.