The Case for Introducing Your Friends to the Diabetes Space
May 16, 2018, 17:20 PM
Diabetes is a big space for conferences. There are few diseases that can rally up a conference like diabetes and let me tell you, nobody does a diabetes conference better than AADE! I’m excited to see so many inspiring and just plain amazing people there. If you’re not in touch with the diabetes online community (DOC) or diabetes social media advocacy (DSMA), then search for #DOC or #DSMA Twitter chats (every Wednesday at 9pm EST) and introduce yourself to some of these amazing folks. These are the people to listen to if you want to learn when, what, how and why on the ins and outs of managing day to day diabetes in the real world.
We need new blood, fresh blood – new perspectives and we need people willing to step in and step up.
One of the things I’m most excited about this year, is that I’m bringing along my good friend Kelley, who is interested in becoming a diabetes educator. She has the wisdom, the understanding and the world view of the pope and has decided to change careers and jump into diabetes. In her words, “People can live better lives, we just need to show them how.” To add to the long list of qualities she brings to the table, she is bilingual, worked for the Peace Corps, and just entered nursing school in the pursuit of her second career.
For those of you who know me, you know I’m a HUGE proponent of mentorship and getting new people in the diabetes space. We need new blood, fresh blood – new perspectives and we need people willing to step in and step up so that some of our long-term veterans that have been running things for years, can afford to retire. I’ve had very well respected CDE’s tell me, “I want to retire, but there is nobody to take my place, so I keep going.”
And then, it was like Christmas, she just said, “I think I want to become a diabetes educator.” Kelley will help so many people and be an inspiration to her community and I can’t wait for her to meet this community of educators I’ve come to know and love. I promise I did not pay her to do this, she chose this on her own and I am grateful. Having new wonderful people come into the diabetes space to become educators is what we need. Do you know someone who may be interested? Here’s the link to some information where they can attend AADE18 for a day and see what this world is like. I can’t think of a better way to introduce someone to the many ways you can work in diabetes care than an AADE conference, can you?
About the Author:
Molly McElwee-Malloy is the Clinical Services Manager for Tandem Diabetes Care. She previously worked for TypeZero Technologies and UVA's Center for Diabetes Technology. Molly is the chair of the technology workgroup for AADE. She's active in the diabetes online peer support community: @MollyMacT1D.