The West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (WYICB) commissioning policy for Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM), alongside an accompanying 5 year implementation plan, set out the aim of 30% saturation of their Type 2 Diabetes population by the end of the 25/26 financial year.
Validated clinical searches were developed in collaboration with the Clinical Digital Resource Collaborative (CDRC). These searches allowed the WYICB to understand what proportion of their type 2 diabetes population who were potentially eligible for CGM were prescribed CGM and to inform a population health approach to ongoing CGM implementation.
The Clinical Digital Resource Collaborative (CDRC) is an NHS‑owned digital innovation partnership that develops and delivers high‑quality clinical resources to support safer, more effective patient care across primary care settings. Based in the North East and North Cumbria (NENC) but with a growing national reach, CDRC brings together clinical, digital and informatics expertise from multiple regional organisations to create resources that integrate seamlessly into EMIS Web and TPP SystmOne, supporting clinicians where they work.
A primary output of the searches was the ability to determine if CGM prescribing activity in WY aligned with the NICE (NG28) guidelines on system affordability and equity of access across our Places. The CDRC searches were compared to other open access data sources on CGM prescribing including the National Diabetes Audit and Open Prescribing.
On the back of the comparison, WYICB recommends the CDRC diabetes med-tech searches, particularly for the type 2 diabetes population, as a reliable source of data for practices/PCNs and ICBs to monitor and strategically plan CGM implementation over time.
Added benefits of the CDRC clinical search suite include supporting WYICB to optimise the allocative and person value realised through strategic commissioning through identifying inappropriate prescribing of CGM and taking opportunities to mitigate for intervention decay in access to CGM, prioritising access for those at greatest risk of health inequalities, including communities of Black and Asian ethnicity.
WYICB has shared information about the CDRC diabetes med-tech search suite with NHSE colleagues regionally and nationally with the aim of raising awareness of this validated clinical search suite with other ICBs.
Sarah De Biase, Senior Programme Manager for Improving Population Health Strategy and Partnerships Directorate at NHS West Yorkshire ICB said, “As Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) transition towards becoming strategic commissioners, it is essential that services are commissioned using our collective resources in a way that delivers technical, allocative and most importantly personal value for the people living in our communities.
“It is the responsibility of ICBs to ensure that our finite resources are used effectively to meet the full range of population health needs balancing system affordability with clinical need in a way that also addresses and reduces health inequalities.
“Achieving this requires access to timely, high-quality data and intelligence. The CDRC diabetes med-technology searches provide West Yorkshire with tools to better understand the size of the T2D population eligible for CGM, assess current coverage, and continuously refine our CGM strategic implementation plan.”
The project showcases the strength of the CDRC model, uniting technical capability, clinical expertise, and trusted system relationships to drive population‑level improvement. In partnership with WYICB, CDRC drew on the core assets that underpin the impact of all their programmes, ensuring this project was aligned to system priorities and delivered meaningful, measurable value.
CDRC began by engaging closely with system leaders to understand commissioning objectives, ensuring outputs were aligned to real‑world system needs. Through an iterative process with WYICB and primary care partners, CDRC translated high‑level requirements into validated clinical searches and reporting tools.
Grounded in deep general practice insight, these tools enabled accurate identification of diabetic patients (all types) who may or may not be using specific diabetes medical-technology, supporting tracking of prescribing saturation over time. This allowed WYICB to assess alignment with NICE guidance, system affordability, and equity ambitions.
A critical factor in the project’s success was CDRC’s ability to integrate outputs directly into EMIS and SystmOne workflows, ensuring that these clinical searches were accessible and actionable, and supported a population‑health approach to the ongoing implementation of Diabetes Technologies. CDRC continues to maintain and update the clinical search suite, ensuring it remains accurate, safe and responsive to evolving guidance and system priorities—providing long‑term value.
While these resources delivered the intended impact, enabling WYICB to monitor uptake, identify inappropriate prescribing and mitigate intervention decay, the project also highlights CDRC’s broader strategic value to the health and care system. WYICB’s endorsement of the CDRC diabetes med‑tech search suite as a reliable data source for PCNs and ICBs, along with its decision to share the work with NHSE nationally, further reinforces partner confidence in our ability to operate effectively within the system on behalf of external clients.
CDRC Programme Manager, Ben Mole added, “I am really proud of this collaborative project between the CDRC and the West Yorkshire ICB, which demonstrates the value CDRC brings to the health and care system. In this case, our partnership enabled WYICB to take action that delivered meaningful, system‑level change and measurable value.
“Whether you’re a healthcare professional, GP practice, ICB, or industry partner, the CDRC is here to support the delivery of your projects—please get in touch and we’d love to have a conversation with you.”
To find out more about how the CDRC can support your project needs, please get in touch.