Erika Strofe works as screening administration support for Diabetic RetinaScreen (DRS), the national diabetic retinal screening programme. Erika tells us about her role working to provide more frequent screening for women with diabetes during pregnancy.
“I joined the DRS team in 2021 and my first role focused on different aspects of the screening programme: reviewing screening outcomes, reporting, and rescheduling screening appointments. Most recently, my role has been to support the delivery of the DRS pregnancy pathway.”
In 2023, Diabetic RetinaScreen began offering more frequent screening for women with diabetes during pregnancy. The risk of diabetic retinopathy may increase during pregnancy and women with type 1 or type 2 diabetes who become pregnant need eye screening more often.
Erika says: “A normal day consists of checking my emails for new referrals to the pregnancy screening pathway, and checking if these women are on our register. Women can be referred onto the pregnancy pathway by their midwife, diabetes nurse or hospital doctor. Completing the registration and consent process quickly is important, as the woman’s first screening appointment should ideally happen at around the time of their booking appointment – which is at 8 to 12 weeks of their pregnancy. To speed things up, I phone women to confirm their consent to take part in screening.”
Erika explains that these phone calls with women are an important part of her role, especially when she is speaking to women who haven’t taken part in screening before. “During these calls I can be asked many questions – some women are newly diagnosed with diabetes and have questions about diabetes and diabetic retinopathy. I explain the screening process and what happens next if we find anything during their screening test.”
Diabetic retina screening is free and if treatment is found to be needed, that is also provided free of charge. Part of Erika’s role is to make sure that women understand how the screening test works and what happens at each part of the screening journey. “It’s really important that I use plain English to explain what diabetic retinopathy is. I often use the terms ‘eye testing’ or ‘eye screening’, so they can relate to what is going to happen at their screening test. Once I explain screening to them, some women can understandably be worried about their sight. I tell them about treatment and that it’s safe during pregnancy.”
Once a woman gives her consent to take part in screening, Erika arranges the appointment. She deals with setting up appointments and arranging the most suitable location. “We do our best to provide screening appointments that best suit people. We have over 140 locations where people can come for their screening test. We know that during pregnancy, women are juggling lots of different appointments and I try to find the time and locations that work best. Lots of the women I deal with have small kids at home, so this can make getting to appointments more difficult. During screening, drops are put into your eyes to make your pupils larger for a short time. It is safe to get these drops while you are pregnant but as they affect your sight for 4 to 6 hours, you can’t drive after your appointment.”
In her role, Erika also interacts with healthcare professionals. “I work very closely with the diabetes midwives and I am in regular communication with them about women’s screening tests and their results letters. They really care about their patients and stay in touch me about their patients’ results and any further treatment.”
Speaking about her role within the DRS team, Erika says: “I am very proud of the team I am part of. My role means I work closely with other members of my team including the registration team, treatment team and our screening provider. I get great support from everyone – this helps me to support women who are referred for screening.”
Given that her role involves speaking to women about screening, Erika is very aware of the questions and concerns some women have about their sight. Providing information is important, Erika says. “I am often asked for materials in other languages. We can provide interpreters but I also send people links to our translated videos that explain diabetic retina screening in their own language, spoken by a native speaker.”
Encouraging women with diabetes to come for screening during pregnancy, Erika is very aware that women with diabetes may be actively managing other aspects of their health. “Early treatment of retinopathy can reduce or prevent damage to your sight. Coming for screening is one way of looking after your health – and that’s important for you, and your baby.”
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