• London School of Hygeine & Tropical Medicine logo

Diabetic Eye Disease: Building Capacity To Prevent Blindness

Understand the diabetes challenge and how health professionals can work with people with diabetes to prevent blindness.

11,138 enrolled on this course

Examination for diabetic eye disease, Solomon Islands  © Anthony Hall CC BY-NC-SA-4.0

Diabetic Eye Disease: Building Capacity To Prevent Blindness

11,138 enrolled on this course

  • 4 weeks

  • 5 hours per week

  • Accreditation available

  • Digital certificate when eligible

  • Intermediate level

Find out more about how to join this course

Gain practical knowledge to reduce risk of vision loss from diabetic eye disease

The number of adults with diabetes is predicted to increase by more than 50% to 642 million by 2040. Diabetic eye disease is a range of ocular complications experienced by people with diabetes. Recent global trends have found an alarming increase in the magnitude of vision loss due to diabetic retinopathy, highlighting the need to strengthen health services to prevent blindness.

Through this online course you will learn the key facts about diabetic eye disease and its management, and how health teams and people with diabetes can work together to reduce the risk of vision loss and blindness.

Download video: standard or HD

Skip to 0 minutes and 8 seconds When I was diagnosed, I was told diabetes can lead to several problems. I’m a lawyer. And I began to notice issues when I was reading. When you realized that, what treatment did you receive? I have received an injection and laser treatment. I began to see the changes. I was able to read again a little. Today, I have no problem. Diabetes mellitus is an emerging global public health challenge. By 2040, which is just over 20 years from now, we expect that there will be a 50% increase in the number of adults with diabetes. The number of people living worldwide with diabetes is increasing at a considerable rate. And the management of this important condition is a serious public health issue.

Skip to 1 minute and 2 seconds We realize that one in three people with diabetes may develop diabetic retinopathy, which is a condition which affects the back of the eye and may threaten vision. Early detection through regular eye screening of persons with diabetes is central to prevent blindness. Within a health system, this means three things. It means we have to improve access and services for screening. We have to have regular counseling and health education for people living with diabetes so that they understand the risks that they carry. And finally, we have to strengthen the clinical and surgical services that are available to deal with diabetic eye disease. Diabetes eye care providers face a lot of challenges in delivering services at the local level.

Skip to 1 minute and 50 seconds Firstly, they need to develop mechanisms to deliver services. And these are generally not available in many places. They then need to purchase the equipment, invest in building the infrastructure to provide the services. Once that is done, they need to build the capacity of the local eye care teams so they can then go on to provide services. And above all, to empower the population, the people with diabetes who actually need to share the responsibility of controlling their diabetes and reducing the risk factors which cause diabetic eye disease. In this course, we’ll be looking closely at the magnitude of diabetes and the risk factors for diabetic eye disease.

Skip to 2 minutes and 39 seconds We will look at the principles of screening for diabetic retinopathy and the models for service delivery and treatment that are in practice at present. We’ll also look at a practical activity on how to plan services for diabetic eye diseases for a 1 million population. We look forward to having you on our course.

What topics will you cover?

  • Classification, natural history, epidemiology and complications of diabetes mellitus and diabetic eye disease, in particular diabetic retinopathy
  • Impact of diabetic eye disease on the individual, society and health services
  • Public health and screening for diabetic eye disease: principles, guidelines and implementation models
  • Partnerships and team approach to prevent blindness from diabetic retinopathy
  • Approaches to provision of screening and grading services
  • Treatment protocols and guidelines for diabetic retinopathy in high and low resourced health systems
  • Monitoring and evaluation approaches for diabetic retinopathy screening

Who is this accredited by?

The CPD Certification Service
The CPD Certification Service:

This course has been certified by the CPD Certification Service as conforming to continuing professional development principles.

When would you like to start?

Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.

  • Available now

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Describe the classification, natural history, epidemiology and complications of diabetes mellitus
  • Interpret the classification, pathophysiology and epidemiology of diabetic eye disease and its impact on eye health services and society
  • Evaluate public health strategies for the control of diabetic eye disease
  • Describe and apply the principles of screening to diabetic retinopathy
  • Explore the models for detection of diabetic retinopathy and their implications within high and low resourced health systems
  • Evaluate guidelines for grading, screening and monitoring its implementation with the diabetic retinopathy care pathway
  • Identify the barriers and challenges experienced by people living with diabetes to manage their diabetes, and comply with screening and treatment
  • Assess treatment protocols and resources requirements for the management of Diabetic eye disease and its implementation at a programme level
  • Apply the planning tool to strengthen diabetic eye care services at a local level

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for ophthalmologists, ophthalmic nurses, clinical ophthalmic officers, diabetes nurses, diabetic eye disease screeners and graders, public health specialists, eye health programme managers and planners, diabetologists, general practitioners and all health care personnel involved in supporting people with diabetes.

Who will you learn with?

Associate Professor in International Eye Health. Ophthalmologist and Educator, focusing on research and education to eliminate avoidable blindness. Academic lead for the Open education for Eye Health

Who developed the course?

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine is a world leader in research and postgraduate education in public and global health. Its mission is to improve health and health equity worldwide.

Ways to learn

Buy this course

Subscribe & save

Limited access

Choose the best way to learn for you!

$134/one-off payment

$27.99

For the first two months. Automatically renews

Free

Fulfill your current learning needDevelop skills to further your careerSample the course materials
Access to this courseticktick

Access expires 26 Apr 2024

Access to 1,000+ coursescrosstickcross
Learn at your own paceticktickcross
Discuss your learning in commentstickticktick
Certificate when you're eligiblePrinted and digitalDigital onlycross
Continue & Upgrade

Cancel for free anytime

Ways to learn

Choose the best way to learn for you!

Subscribe & save

$27.99

For the first two months. Automatically renews

Develop skills to further your career

  • Access to this course
  • Access to 1,000+ courses
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Digital certificate when you're eligible

Cancel for free anytime

Buy this course

$134/one-off payment

Fulfill your current learning need

  • Access to this course
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible

Limited access

Free

Sample the course materials

  • Access expires 26 Apr 2024

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

T&Cs apply.

Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
  • Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate

Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn

Learner reviews

Learner reviews cannot be loaded due to your cookie settings. Please and refresh the page to view this content.

Do you know someone who'd love this course? Tell them about it...

You can use the hashtag #FLdiabeteseyes to talk about this course on social media.