The Association of British Clinical Diabetologists is the national organisation of Consultant Physicians in Britain who specialise in Diabetes Mellitus. Most are also Acute General Physicians, and many are also Specialists in Endocrinology and Lipid Metabolism. ABCD was established in 1997 with the principal objective of ensuring high quality care for all UK diabetes patients ABCD is essentially a professional organisation committed to the preservation and support of diabetes specialist care services ABCD believes that local diabetes specialists are uniquely qualified to provide guidance and leadership for district diabetes services ABCD membership was initially open only to UK consultant diabetologists but was later extended to include specialist registrars.