Women at risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) during pregnancy will now have access to at-home testing as part of an initiative from Dartford & Gravesham NHS Trust (DGT) to make GDM testing more accessible and improve health equity across their patient population.
The GTT@home test, developed by digital clinical diagnostics and diabetes home testing provider Digostics, is claimed to be the world’s first remote oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).
The DGT at-home GDM testing initiative increases the accessibility of testing for all patients but particularly addresses barriers to care for underserved patient groups who may face challenges with clinic-based testing due to travel limitations, parking and travel costs, loss of paid work and additional childcare costs.
GDM affects up to 20% of pregnancies in the UK, contributing to significant health risks if left undiagnosed. These include perinatal complications, such as larger-than-average babies and emergency birth interventions, alongside long-term health challenges like increased risk of type 2 diabetes for both mothers and their children. Timely identification and management are critical to reducing these risks.
For the traditional in-clinic OGTT, expectant mothers have to travel to a clinic early in the morning and undergo two blood draws spaced two hours apart while remaining fasted. This process often requires arranging childcare, taking time off work, and managing transportation. For many, these obstacles lead to missed appointments, delayed or missed diagnoses, and increased health risks. GTT@home eliminates these barriers, enabling women to conduct the same gold-standard OGTT from the comfort of their homes, on the day most convenient to them.
"Reducing barriers to care is key to improving health outcomes," said Sadie Hafford, Diabetes Specialist Midwife at Dartford & Gravesham NHS Foundation Trust. "GTT@home allows us to reach women who may have struggled to attend clinic-based tests, making screening more inclusive and effective. This innovation marks a significant step forward in reducing healthcare disparities within our community."
The GTT@home test also ensures that every woman determined to be at-risk by their midwives has the opportunity for early detection and appropriate care, helping to address challenges in maternal health outcomes as outlined in NHS England's Core20PLUS5 framework, which focuses on reducing healthcare inequalities for the most deprived populations and underserved groups.
"Our mission is to make use of digital health innovation to make it easier for everyone to get the care they need, especially those who are already disadvantaged when it comes to accessing healthcare,” said Valerie Elderkin, Interim Head of Midwifery, at Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust. "By adopting home-based diabetes screening, we’re addressing health inequalities and demonstrating our commitment to accessible and inclusive care."
GTT@home includes a comprehensive home testing kit delivered directly to women at home. The kit contains the GTT@home test device, finger prickers for blood sample collection, a preformulated glucose drink, and detailed instructions. The process begins with an initial blood sample, followed by the consumption of the glucose drink. Two hours later, a second blood sample is taken. The GTT@home device immediately analyses both samples, ensuring accurate and timely results.
The kit includes extensively user-tested instructions, as well as visual and audio cues from the device itself. Support materials, such as video guides, website FAQs, and live online or telephone assistance are available from 6am to 6pm, seven days a week. Non-English language versions of the kit and all supporting materials further ensure accessibility, particularly for underserved and minority populations. This approach makes testing inclusive, expanding access to care for those who may otherwise slip through the cracks of the system.
