Diabetes mellitus

ADULT

  • If any of the following are present or suspected, please refer the patient to the emergency department (via ambulance if necessary) or follow local emergency care protocols or seek emergent medical advice if in a remote region.

    Adult conditions

    Pancreatic disease

    • Diabetic ketoacidosis - A
    • Diabetes and severe vomiting -A
    • Acute severe hyperglycaemia
    • Acute severe hypoglycaemia -A
    • Hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic state (HHS) -A
    • Newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes –B (call registrar or consultant on call)
    • Foot ulcer with infection and systemically unwell or febrile -A
    • Invasive infection or rapidly spreading cellulitis of the foot (defined by peripheral redness around the wound >2cm) -A
    • Acute foot ischaemia -A
    • Wet gangrene foot -A

    Urgent cases – (refer to key below)
    A – client to present to emergency department immediately
    B – client to present to diabetes specialist service within 24 hours. If no specialist service is available, present to an emergency department.

    High Risk Foot

    • Foot ulcer with infection and systemically unwell or febrile
    • Invasive infection or rapidly spreading cellulitis (defined by peripheral redness around the wound >2cm)
    • Acute ischaemia
    • Wet gangrene
    • Acute or suspected Charcot

    Thyroid disorders

    • Hyperthyroidism complicated by cardiac, respiratory compromise or other indications of severe illness (fever, vomiting, labile blood pressure, altered mental state)
    • Neutropenic sepsis in patient taking carbimazole or propylthiouracil
    • Hyperthyroidism with hypokalaemia or paralysis
    • Suspected myxoedema coma (altered consciousness, hypothermia, fluid overload, bradycardia, hyponatraemia)
    • Stridor associated with a thyroid mass
    • Possible tracheal or superior vena cava obstruction from retrosternal thyroid enlargement

    Adrenal disease

    • Addisonian crisis
    • Suspected or confirmed acute adrenal insufficiency
    • Phaeochromocytoma in crisis with uncontrolled hypertension

    Pituitary disorders

    • All patients with visual field loss (usually temporal and classically bitemporal superior quadrantinopia/hemianopia)
    • Pituitary tumour with severe headache
    • Pituitary tumour with evidence of symptomatic cortisol insufficiency
    • Hyperprolactinaemia with visual impairment or other neurological signs

    Oligo/amenorrhoea, hirsutism, acne, female infertility

    • Signs in the central nervous system that could indicate a pituitary tumour (visual field defect headaches)

    Calcium, electrolyte and metabolic bone disorders

    • Acutely symptomatic hypocalcaemia (e.g. tetany) with serum calcium <2.0mmol/L
    • Severe symptomatic hypercalcaemia (usually serum calcium > 3.0 mmol/l)
    • Hypernatraemia or hyponatraemia with acute confusion/delirium
    • Suspected or confirmed diabetes insipidus with hypernatraemia

    Paediatric Conditions

    Paediatric diabetes

    • New diagnosis of type 1 diabetes = polyuria and/or polydipsia and random BSL >11.0.
    • Ketoacidosis in a known diabetic with any of the following
      • systemic symptoms (fever, lethargy) or
      • vomiting or
      • inability to eat (even if not vomiting) or
      • abdominal pain or
      • headache

    Growth failure

    • Suspected pituitary mass (visual field loss/CNS signs)
    • Addisonian crisis (including unexplained hyponatraemia & hypoglycaemia)
    • Myxoedema coma
    • New onset diabetes insipidus (including unexplained hypernatraemia)
    • Hypocalcaemia (including acute rickets) with seizures

    • Refer to local Healthpathways or local guidelines
    • For chronic disease management consider GPMP/TCA management plan

    For management in primary care:

Minimum Referral Criteria
Category 1
(appointment within 30 calendar days)
  • Pregnancy in patient with existing diabetes. For optimum care, patient should be seen within 1 week.
  • Newly diagnosed GDM. For optimum care, patient should be seen within 1 week.
  • Poorly controlled diabetes with recent deterioration despite escalation of therapy (HbA1c >86mmol/mol or 10%)
  • Major hypoglycaemic episode (assistance has been required by a third party) OR major episode of hypoglycaemia
  • Existing type 1 diabetes with newly diagnosed coeliac disease
  • Existing diabetes with recent unintentional weight loss (> 5% of body weight over a month period)
  • Diabetes requiring optimisation in the presence of severe vascular complications, for example stage 3 CKD, proliferative retinopathy, gastroparesis
  • Diabetes with disordered eating
  • Diabetic foot ulcer – refer to high-risk foot criteria
  • Post DKA admission. For optimum care, face to face or telephone review should be seen within 1 week.
Category 2
(appointment within 90 calendar days)

*The following category 2 cases can be referred to local/regional general physician if endocrinologist access is not locally available.

  • Diabetes requiring optimisation in the presence of uncontrolled risk factors for chronic vascular disease (CVD)*
  • Unsatisfactorily controlled diabetes with recent deterioration despite escalation of therapy (HbA1c 64-86mmol/mol or 8-10%)*
  • High-risk (but currently not ulcerated) foot in client with diabetes*
  • Pre-pregnancy planning
  • Private or commercial driver's licence who require a new or renewal of conditional licence
  • Stable type 1 diabetes
  • For consideration or commencement of continuous glucose monitoring or continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion pump
Category 3
(appointment within 365 calendar days)
  • Self-management education or difficulties in managing diabetes in the absence of adequate community resources

Please insert the below information and minimum referral criteria into referral

1. Reason for request Indicate on the referral

  • To establish a diagnosis
  • For treatment or intervention
  • For advice and management
  • For specialist to take over management
  • Reassurance for GP/second opinion
  • For a specified test/investigation the GP can't order, or the patient can't afford or access
  • Reassurance for the patient/family
  • For other reason (e.g. rapidly accelerating disease progression)
  • Clinical judgement indicates a referral for specialist review is necessary

2. Essential referral information Referral will be returned without this

  • Type of diabetes and duration of disease
  • Details of all treatments offered and efficacy
  • Medication history
  • Presence of any complications and details when screening last performed
  • Height, weight, BMI
  • BP
  • History of smoking
  • HbA1c (current and previous)
  • FBC ELFT fasting lipids – cholesterol LDL HDL Tg
  • Urine albumin:creatinine

3. Additional referral information Useful for processing the referral

  • Copy of GPMP/TCA
  • Ankle brachial pressure index (ABPI)
  • Licence status
  • Results of depression screening (PHQ-2)
    • over the last 2 weeks, how often have you been bothered by any of the following problems?
      • little interest or pleasure in doing things?
      • feeling down, depressed, or hopeless?
  • If Type 1 diabetes: TSH, anti-transglutaminase antibodies, IgA for coeliac disease within the last 5 years
  • If peripheral neuropathy: B12 folate

4. Request

  • Patient's Demographic Details

    • Full name (including aliases)
    • Date of birth
    • Residential and postal address
    • Telephone contact number/s – home, mobile and alternative
    • Medicare number (where eligible)
    • Name of the parent or caregiver (if appropriate)
    • Preferred language and interpreter requirements
    • Identifies as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander

    Referring Practitioner Details

    • Full name
    • Full address
    • Contact details – telephone, fax, email
    • Provider number
    • Date of referral
    • Signature

    Relevant clinical information about the condition

    • Presenting symptoms (evolution and duration)
    • Physical findings
    • Details of previous treatment (including systemic and topical medications prescribed) including the course and outcome of the treatment
    • Body mass index (BMI)
    • Details of any associated medical conditions which may affect the condition or its treatment (e.g. diabetes), noting these must be stable and controlled prior to referral
    • Current medications and dosages
    • Drug allergies
    • Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs use

    Reason for request

    • To establish a diagnosis
    • For treatment or intervention
    • For advice and management
    • For specialist to take over management
    • Reassurance for GP/second opinion
    • For a specified test/investigation the GP can't order, or the patient can't afford or access
    • Reassurance for the patient/family
    • For other reason (e.g. rapidly accelerating disease progression)
    • Clinical judgement indicates a referral for specialist review is necessary

    Clinical modifiers

    • Impact on employment
    • Impact on education
    • Impact on home
    • Impact on activities of daily living
    • Impact on ability to care for others
    • Impact on personal frailty or safety
    • Identifies as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander

    Other relevant information

    • Willingness to have surgery (where surgery is a likely intervention)
    • Choice to be treated as a public or private patient
    • Compensable status (e.g. DVA, Work Cover, Motor Vehicle Insurance, etc.)

  • If any of the following are present or suspected, please refer the patient to the emergency department (via ambulance if necessary) or follow local emergency care protocols or seek emergent medical advice if in a remote region.

    • Please note that where appropriate and where available, the referral may be streamed to an associated public allied health and/or nursing service. Access to some specific services may include initial assessment and management by associated public allied health and/or nursing, which may either facilitate or negate the need to see the public medical specialist.

    • A change in patient circumstance (such as condition deteriorating, or becoming pregnant) may affect the urgency categorisation and should be communicated as soon as possible.

    • Please indicate in the referral if the patient is unable to access mandatory tests or investigations as they incur a cost or are unavailable locally.

Last updated: 11 June 2021

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