Progress and Collaboration in 2018
Apr 13, 2018, 16:40 PM
By: Donna Ryan, MPH, RN, RD, CDE, FAADE
Regional Director, Community Health and Outreach
Sacred Heart Hospital, Pensacola, FL
In my January president’s letter, Being a Voice in 2018, I shared with you AADE’s commitment at the national and global level to be outspoken, to be bold, and to raise our voice to serve diabetes educators and those with diabetes. We have been doing just that in 2018 (can you believe it’s already April?). Here are some highlights of how AADE has collaborated with the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE), the American Diabetes Association (ADA), the Endocrine Society and the CDC on important projects and issues, all in the first few months of 2018. We have been using the expertise, compassion and patient-focused knowledge of AADE members to extend our impact and visibility.
Consensus Statement on Glucose Targets: As many of you may have seen online or in the news, AADE joined AACE, ADA, the Endocrine Society and others in calling out the American College of Physicians on their potentially harmful new A1C targets for people with type 2 diabetes. The new targets of 7 or 8 percent could prevent many from receiving the full benefits of long-term glucose management and could potentially harm those for whom lower blood glucose targets may be more appropriate. AADE will continue to join others in calling on the ACP to revise their guidelines.
A Great "IDEA": Looking to the future of care, AADE recently partnered with AACE who is leading a collaborative project called the Innovating Decisions and Empowering Actions in Diabetes (IDEA) Project to bring together stakeholders in primary care, endocrinology, and diabetes education. This important, multi-year project seeks to transform clinical practice and optimize glucose management through the use of real-time data. The IDEA Project will activate a “beyond A1C” approach and help the entire healthcare team apply recommendations for interpretation and use of standardized glucose monitoring reports in clinical practice to improve outcomes for people living with diabetes. The steering committee will develop a robust series of online, interactive clinical case vignettes to demonstrate how reports can be used with individuals to positively impact self-management. Stay tuned as we can continue to update you on this exciting collaboration. AADE is honored to appoint immediate past president Nancy D’Hondt to sit on the steering committee for this project
CDC Campaign: AADE is also excited to be a part of a new CDC-led campaign to promote the value of diabetes self-management education and support (DSMES), and to increase referral and utilization rates. Diabetes education is drastically underutilized, yet study after study continues to show its positive effects. If we are to curb the effects of the diabetes epidemic in any way, it’s vital that more people engage in DSMES and work with their diabetes care team to create an individualized treatment plan. Be on the lookout in the coming weeks as we work with the CDC to continue to develop and ultimately launch this amazing opportunity.
As I said in my January AADE In Practice letter; be outspoken, be bold and raise your voice. Together we can work together to truly impact diabetes rates in the United States and abroad, and ultimately improve the quality of life for those affected by diabetes. I challenge you to become a voice within AADE and volunteer. I invite you to visit My AADE Network today, find your state or local group, and get involved!