Diabetes care is in crisis due to the Department of Health's failure to fill vital healthcare posts, according to a campaign group.

Diabetes Action says a planned integrated care programme, involving an increased role for GPs in diabetes care  that would move patients away from the overstretched hospital system, has been stalled due to Government inaction.

It says current diabetes care is in such a state of crisis that some patients are forced to wait two to three years for a basic hospital review visit.

This integrated care programme, it says, would radically improve care for 150,000 people with type 2 diabetes.

Seventeen promised diabetes nursing posts to be based in both hospitals and GP practices have yet to be filled.

And Diabetes Action has warned that even if these posts are filled, many GPs do not yet not have the resources or infrastructure in place to provide optimal diabetes care for these additional patients.

Diabetes Action Chairman Dr Kevin Moore said it is impossible to provide all the care diabetes patients need in a hospital outpatient setting, and half of GPs, along with practice nurses, could provide the bulk of a patient's diabetes care at community level if the system was properly resourced.

He told irishhealth.com that some diabetes patients are having to wait between two and three years for a basic hospital diabetes review visit. These patients are supposed to have a medical review every four months, he pointed out.

Minister of State at the Department of Health Alex White recently announced that the 17 integrated care diabetes nursing posts would be filled by the end of June. The nurses would work four days a week in the community and one day in hospitals.

However, according to Dr Moore, even if these posts were filled, GPs would still need to be adequately resourced to provide optimal diabetes treatment in primary care. "GPs need to be funded properly to fulfill this role as they will be taking on extra work."

He pointed out that in the UK, GPs are funded specifically to provide chronic disease care, including diabetes care. Dr Moore said UK GPs receive performance payments if they meet specific care targets with diabetes patients.

He said in terms of modern diabetes care, Ireland is at least 10 years behind the UK, where there is a structured integrated care system between hospitals and the community.

Some Irish GPs already provide shared diabetes care with hospitals, but this can be a serious strain on their workload as they are not specifically resourced to provide this care.

Diabetes Action says it is important that the integrated care programme be implemented immediately, especially as diabetes patients will not, as promised, be getting GP visit medical cards.

In addition, Diabetes Action says only seven podiatrist posts out of a promised 16 have been filled. The podiatrists were to provide a national foot care service for people with diabetes, who are susceptible to foot ulceration and unnecessary and preventable amputations.

The campaign group says it is cost-effective for the Government to invest in the prevention of foot ulcers and infections in diabetes patients.

"It is possible to reduce the cost of diabetic foot disease by half if the HSE fully implements its foot care strategy and fills the remaining podiatry posts."

Diabetes Action describes out current level of diabetes-related foot amputations as 'shocking'. A total of 781  amputations were carried out in the two-year period 2010-11.

The campaign group has also pointed out that some children are being denied access to vital insulin pumps due to nursing and dietetic posts remaining unfilled.