Zoe Scott was named the winner of this year’s Quality in Care (QiC) Diabetes People’s Award. She had been inspired to develop an online community raising awareness of the psychological side of living with diabetes. Hedgie Pricks Diabetes was launched last year in May, initially on Facebook and then as a website in its own right. Having grown up with type 1 diabetes, she had felt that she did not get the emotional support she needed when she experienced anxiety and depression as a teenager. Now 21, Zoe oversees the efforts of Hedgie Pricks Diabetes in giving a voice to people who have shared her experience, and making sure healthcare professionals working in diabetes care fully understand the emotional and psychosocial impact of living with the condition.
Zoe, who is based in Chelmsford, says, “When you work full time and have to do the whole project around your job, it can be very stressful and it can make you wonder if it is always worth it. However the feedback I have received from people and been given this award helps me to continue to make this project happen, to make diabetes teams look after their patients’ emotional wellbeing as well as general diabetes care.
The award help me ensure that I will continue to work hard to make sure those who feel they can’t talk about how they feel, can have their voices heard.”
The picture, above right, shows Angela Allison (last year’s previous winner on the left with Zoe on the right holding her award.
