Decatur Memorial Hospital Diabetes Education Program Merits American Diabetes Association Recognition

March 30, 2007

The diabetes self-management education program at the DMH Wellness Center has been awarded recognition from the American Diabetes Association, for offering high quality education services to the patients it serves.

The DMH Diabetes Program provides the latest information on managing your health. Participants learn disease process, nutrition, activity, psychosocial adjustment, and hot to prevent, detect and treat diabetic complications.

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) Education Recognition effort, begun in the fall of 1986, is a voluntary process which assures that approved education programs have met the National Standards for Diabetes Self-Management Education Programs. Programs that achieve recognition status have a staff of knowledgeable health professionals who can provide state-of-the-art information about diabetes management for participants.

Self-management education is an essential component of diabetes treatment. One consequence of compliance with the National Standards is the greater consistency in the quality and quantity of education offered to people with diabetes. The participant in an ADA Recognized program will be taught, as needed, self-care skills that will promote better management of his or her diabetes treatment regimen. All approved education programs cover the following topics as needed: diabetes disease process; nutritional management; physical activity; medications; monitoring; preventing, detecting, and treating acute complications; preventing, detecting, and treating chronic complications through risk reduction; goal setting and problem solving; psychological adjustment; and preconception care, management during pregnancy, and gestational management.

Assuring high-quality education for patient self-care is one of the primary goals of the Education Recognition program. Through the support of the health care team and increased knowledge and awareness of diabetes, the patient can assume a major part of the responsibility for his/her diabetes management.

"The process gives professionals a national standard by which to measure the quality of the services they provide, says Tina Cloney, DMH Diabetes Program Manager. And, of course, it helps consumers to identify these programs.

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