Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: diabetes, diabetes prevention, health promotion, licensed health care professionals, national diabetes education program, NDEP, nursing, RN
Good Morning All and Happy New Year!
One of my interests as a RN is diabetes prevention and care. Recently I came across a wonderful resource: The National Diabetes Education Program. This site not only provides statistics for the health care worker but it also provides resources for patients and their families.
Working with patients the one thing I have found is a lack of education. We, as health care professionals, are really good at giving patients their drugs and educating them on how to take those drugs. We are AWFUL at condition education. It is important to remember our patients are not stupid- they have the ability to learn and may be more motivated to take care of themselves if they understand a part of the pathophysiology of their disease.
This site highlights the ABC’s of diabetes prevention: A1C, Blood Pressure and Cholesterol. If we manage these factors we are less likely to develop diabetes. This is huge, as diabetes costs our health care system over $116 billion annually (these are the direct health care costs- total health care costs are about $174 billion dollars per year). (http://ndep.nih.gov/diabetes-facts/index.aspx#cost)
I would love to hear from other nurses, physicians, etc. about their experiences with diabetic patients and what they have learned. Feel free to share!
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