The American Association of Diabetes Educators has seven self-care behaviors handouts. As handouts go, they are too short and missing a lot of information. They did do a good thing by having them in Spanish, but not directed to any specific dialect.
Since I am not a member of AADE, this may be the reason I am not able to download any of the handouts. I can save them as individual PDF files so that I have them available when I need them, so this may be what they are talking about. Not the most intuitive. However, I have not found a way to download all of them at once.
In her article on Diabetes Health, Donna Tomky did lay out a good definition of the seven self-care behaviors handouts. So I will repeat them here:
“Healthy Eating - Learning to make healthy food choices by paying attention to nutritional content and portion sizes
Being Active - Recognizing the importance of physical activity and making a plan to start moving today
Monitoring - Learning to check, record, and understand blood glucose levels and other numbers important to diabetes self-care
Taking Medication - Remembering to take medications as prescribed and understanding how they affect the body and diabetes management
Problem Solving - Gaining skills to identify problems or obstacles to self-care behaviors and learning how to solve them
Reducing Risks - Understanding the potential complications associated with diabetes and taking steps to prevent developing them
Healthy Coping - Developing healthy ways of dealing with challenges and difficult situations related to diabetes”
I was intending to do a blog on each of the items above, but after reading and rereading them, I will only put myself in a depression writing about them. It is depressing enough reading them when one realizes the opportunities lost in providing educational value in the handouts. Yes, there is some quality information, but since this is only a website and they cannot bill a reader, I can understand why there is so little information.
Why does the AADE have to misrepresent the USDA plate and leave the cup for milk completely off? Yes, I disapprove of the USDA plate because it is done to promote agricultural products heavily, but its use on this site leaves it completely unbalanced. Nutritional balance is sadly lacking in the USDA plate, but I am appalled by the way the AADE represents it at the end of the “healthy eating” handout – unhealthy is the best word I can use for print.
Please take time to explore the handouts here.
October 14, 2011
October 13, 2011
More on the AADE Discussion
The challenges for the AADE are many and varied. Will they be able to rise to the challenge and meet many of their goals? This remains to be seen, but they are starting to make improvements, all be it at a snails pace. Of the five changes spelled out in Amy's article in 2007, all of them need further work although some of the changes are beginning to have progress. I would rate the progress to date as a D+.
Some of the new challenges for AADE have not even appeared on their radar, but must be strongly considered. Number one is a field that very few are giving any attention, prediabetes. They could suggest a new term to the ADA. They could lobby for Medicare, Medicaid, and medical insurance to enter the preventive medicine field and help people delay the onset of full-blown type 2 diabetes. This could result in cost savings for everyone. Along with this would be putting the use of Metformin before the FDA as approved for prediabetes. Failing that, at least working with physicians to use it “off label”.
Number two is a big one. Start discussing insulin at diagnosis. Eliminate the myths about insulin and show the physicians that you know how to handle insulin. You do it now for people with type 1 diabetes, and type 2 should be easier since early on after diagnosis, our bodies still have the ability to produce some insulin. Our highs are not as high or our lows are not as low. Yes, caution with hypoglycemia is important, but often not as dangerous people with type 2 diabetes.
Insulin can be an important tool in the early stages of type 2 diabetes as it allows for quicker management and can be temporary management until those that need to work their weight down have reduced their weight. Yes, insulin can add weight if they remain sedentary. Then once management had been in place and weight is dropping, movement to oral medication or no medications may be possible. Insulin should never be the medication of last resort. By then much of the damage has been done or started and diabetes management will be more difficult.
Third, because type 2 people vary so much in the carbohydrates they can consume and still maintain blood glucose levels – like a bell curve, some at each end of the curve, tolerance for different levels of carbohydrates is a must and not the mantra of 60 carbs per meal. In following the above, please be careful of the whole grains mantra, as wheat and many of the whole grains raise blood glucose more than many people are able to manage.
Fourth, instead of using fear like many physicians and CDEs are prone to do, take a positive attitude and explain what blood glucose levels above 140 mg/dl can cause and especially above 180 mg/dl. This would include the problems of cardiovascular disease, retinopathy, nephropathy, and potential hearing lose from high blood glucose levels and high blood pressure. Also, take time to explain other autoimmune disease and the signs and symptoms associated with each, like celiac disease.
People with type 2 diabetes are not exempt from these diseases and need to be aware of them. Then cover the tests needed that certain oral medications can cause like Metformin over time can cause a decrease in B12 levels and other medications can deplete to body of other vitamins and some minerals. Cover the thyroid and the signs and symptoms of thyroid problems and the TSH test.
It is important that the AADE become more patient centered and do more for the patient in education. We all need the above information and with the previous five blogs and this blog, I hope that I have offered some goals that can be met and some challenges for the future. I must admit that the attitudes I have encountered from many CDEs, has soured me on the profession. The CDEs that are doing great work are the ones that give me hope and as a patient with type 2 diabetes and on insulin, we need all the hope and positive attitudes we can get.
I will be watching the actions of the AADE and will continue to comment on the positive activity or lack of improvements.
Some of the new challenges for AADE have not even appeared on their radar, but must be strongly considered. Number one is a field that very few are giving any attention, prediabetes. They could suggest a new term to the ADA. They could lobby for Medicare, Medicaid, and medical insurance to enter the preventive medicine field and help people delay the onset of full-blown type 2 diabetes. This could result in cost savings for everyone. Along with this would be putting the use of Metformin before the FDA as approved for prediabetes. Failing that, at least working with physicians to use it “off label”.
Number two is a big one. Start discussing insulin at diagnosis. Eliminate the myths about insulin and show the physicians that you know how to handle insulin. You do it now for people with type 1 diabetes, and type 2 should be easier since early on after diagnosis, our bodies still have the ability to produce some insulin. Our highs are not as high or our lows are not as low. Yes, caution with hypoglycemia is important, but often not as dangerous people with type 2 diabetes.
Insulin can be an important tool in the early stages of type 2 diabetes as it allows for quicker management and can be temporary management until those that need to work their weight down have reduced their weight. Yes, insulin can add weight if they remain sedentary. Then once management had been in place and weight is dropping, movement to oral medication or no medications may be possible. Insulin should never be the medication of last resort. By then much of the damage has been done or started and diabetes management will be more difficult.
Third, because type 2 people vary so much in the carbohydrates they can consume and still maintain blood glucose levels – like a bell curve, some at each end of the curve, tolerance for different levels of carbohydrates is a must and not the mantra of 60 carbs per meal. In following the above, please be careful of the whole grains mantra, as wheat and many of the whole grains raise blood glucose more than many people are able to manage.
Fourth, instead of using fear like many physicians and CDEs are prone to do, take a positive attitude and explain what blood glucose levels above 140 mg/dl can cause and especially above 180 mg/dl. This would include the problems of cardiovascular disease, retinopathy, nephropathy, and potential hearing lose from high blood glucose levels and high blood pressure. Also, take time to explain other autoimmune disease and the signs and symptoms associated with each, like celiac disease.
People with type 2 diabetes are not exempt from these diseases and need to be aware of them. Then cover the tests needed that certain oral medications can cause like Metformin over time can cause a decrease in B12 levels and other medications can deplete to body of other vitamins and some minerals. Cover the thyroid and the signs and symptoms of thyroid problems and the TSH test.
It is important that the AADE become more patient centered and do more for the patient in education. We all need the above information and with the previous five blogs and this blog, I hope that I have offered some goals that can be met and some challenges for the future. I must admit that the attitudes I have encountered from many CDEs, has soured me on the profession. The CDEs that are doing great work are the ones that give me hope and as a patient with type 2 diabetes and on insulin, we need all the hope and positive attitudes we can get.
I will be watching the actions of the AADE and will continue to comment on the positive activity or lack of improvements.
October 12, 2011
Some Suggestions for AADE
In my research since September 29, 2011 about the American Association of Diabetes Educators, I have seen some promising goals and projects mentioned and some areas that are not really discussed.
The problem preventing many solutions is our medical insurance industry, which blocks these from becoming a reality. This is going to become a problem for the states if they do not modernize their laws and force some changes. If the states continue to ignore the problems facing patients needing education for chronic diseases like diabetes and not forcing the hands of insurance companies, the federal government will be called upon to establish the rules, and it is doing its best presently. I can hear the cry of States rights, but ignoring problems is not the right of the states.
With diabetes, we are facing many problems at present:
1. Little or no recognition for prediabetes (I agree we need a different term) and the increased costs when it progresses to type 2 diabetes.
2. Medical insurance companies not assisting patients with medical tests for prediabetes and possible medications.
3. No preventive initiatives to aid in the education of people with this diagnosis to prevent or delay the progression to type 2 diabetes.
4. No education for people with prediabetes – insurance will not cover it and even Medicare says no.
5. Many physicians that will not make an official diagnosis of prediabetes.
These are just a few of the many problems facing people with prediabetes. Yet AADE can do nothing for these people at present or is not interested.
So my suggestion is to work on billable solutions that could help these people that are left falling through the cracks. Find a way to use shared medical appointments (SMAs) for educating people with this diagnosis. Also, work on ways to communicate with physicians to assist physicians in making the proper diagnosis using the proper tests.
If the above is too difficult, then find a way to use peer-to-peer groups for these patients and train one individual that can lead this group as a volunteer if need be. Prediabetes is the beginning of type 2 and much needs to be done to assist people in making lifestyle changes and delaying the onset of full type 2 diabetes. It can be very cost saving for insurance companies and Medicare in the short and long-term. Talk up some preventive medicine with the insurance companies.
The AADE could also work with the FDA to approve metformin for use with prediabetes (instead of the “off-label” when it is prescribed now) while they are making lifestyle changes and especially those able to exercise slowly in the start. Then work with the doctors to provide relief of medication when they have proven that the lifestyle changes are making a difference and their blood glucose level are not trending upward.
Teach them how to test and watch for the trends in blood glucose and how the different foods affect their blood glucose. Let them experiment with lower carbohydrate diets to reduce weight if needed and also what moderate to low carbohydrate diets can do for reduced blood glucose readings. This allows them to become educated and possibly prevent them from have the full onset of type 2 diabetes for many years and possibly some will be able to avoid type 2 altogether. This is possible.
The problem preventing many solutions is our medical insurance industry, which blocks these from becoming a reality. This is going to become a problem for the states if they do not modernize their laws and force some changes. If the states continue to ignore the problems facing patients needing education for chronic diseases like diabetes and not forcing the hands of insurance companies, the federal government will be called upon to establish the rules, and it is doing its best presently. I can hear the cry of States rights, but ignoring problems is not the right of the states.
With diabetes, we are facing many problems at present:
1. Little or no recognition for prediabetes (I agree we need a different term) and the increased costs when it progresses to type 2 diabetes.
2. Medical insurance companies not assisting patients with medical tests for prediabetes and possible medications.
3. No preventive initiatives to aid in the education of people with this diagnosis to prevent or delay the progression to type 2 diabetes.
4. No education for people with prediabetes – insurance will not cover it and even Medicare says no.
5. Many physicians that will not make an official diagnosis of prediabetes.
These are just a few of the many problems facing people with prediabetes. Yet AADE can do nothing for these people at present or is not interested.
So my suggestion is to work on billable solutions that could help these people that are left falling through the cracks. Find a way to use shared medical appointments (SMAs) for educating people with this diagnosis. Also, work on ways to communicate with physicians to assist physicians in making the proper diagnosis using the proper tests.
If the above is too difficult, then find a way to use peer-to-peer groups for these patients and train one individual that can lead this group as a volunteer if need be. Prediabetes is the beginning of type 2 and much needs to be done to assist people in making lifestyle changes and delaying the onset of full type 2 diabetes. It can be very cost saving for insurance companies and Medicare in the short and long-term. Talk up some preventive medicine with the insurance companies.
The AADE could also work with the FDA to approve metformin for use with prediabetes (instead of the “off-label” when it is prescribed now) while they are making lifestyle changes and especially those able to exercise slowly in the start. Then work with the doctors to provide relief of medication when they have proven that the lifestyle changes are making a difference and their blood glucose level are not trending upward.
Teach them how to test and watch for the trends in blood glucose and how the different foods affect their blood glucose. Let them experiment with lower carbohydrate diets to reduce weight if needed and also what moderate to low carbohydrate diets can do for reduced blood glucose readings. This allows them to become educated and possibly prevent them from have the full onset of type 2 diabetes for many years and possibly some will be able to avoid type 2 altogether. This is possible.
October 11, 2011
Diabetes – Where Knowledge Is Power
Diabetes is not the only chronic disease where knowledge is power, but it certainly is important in diabetes. Hopefully the new president of the American Association of Diabetes Educators, Donna Tomky will be able to make more of the changes necessary for the AADE to return to a viable and worthwhile organization instead of an antiquated behemoth that is a cover for members that ignore their responsibilities.
Donna Tomky is spreading the word through many sources to get the word of her expectations out, not only to the members, but also to patients. Her goal in this article is to emphasize education by AADE members to their patients. Now if she can minimize the CDE mandates put forth by so many of the AADE members, this will be a giant step forward in familiarizing patients with diabetes education. This education has been proven effective and is a tool for patients to become more knowledgeable about diabetes and be able to manage diabetes to avoid many of the complications of diabetes.
Diabetes is indeed a complex disease that requires daily self-management, blood glucose self-management, and the ability to formulate flexible lifestyle plans to fit the needs of the patient. It is not the place of the CDEs to be inflexible and intransigent in their teaching.
With this in mind, she lays out the seven key areas of diabetes self-management developed by the AADE called the AADE7 Self-Care Behaviors. They are:
“Healthy Eating - Learning to make healthy food choices by paying attention to nutritional content and portion sizes
Being Active - Recognizing the importance of physical activity and making a plan to start moving today
Monitoring - Learning to check, record, and understand blood glucose levels and other numbers important to diabetes self-care
Taking Medication - Remembering to take medications as prescribed and understanding how they affect the body and diabetes management
Problem Solving - Gaining skills to identify problems or obstacles to self-care behaviors and learning how to solve them
Reducing Risks - Understanding the potential complications associated with diabetes and taking steps to prevent developing them
Healthy Coping - Developing healthy ways of dealing with challenges and difficult situations related to diabetes”
Some CDEs will work with you to create a plan using these and implementing them into your daily life. Others unfortunately will mandate certain information and order you to implement them. To know what to do, you can investigate the seven health-care behaviors here and learn to use them on your own. This is can be very important when a CDE is not available or does not consider your goals for lifestyle changes. If you come across a CDE that listens and helps you with your goals and helps you modify them to manage diabetes more effectively, you have a great combination and work hard to keep this CDE.
For someone who is newly diagnosed with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, but not prediabetes, Medicare and most private insurance companies cover 10 hours of diabetes self-management training. After that annually, patients are entitled to two hours of diabetes self-management training. AADE recommends that patients ask their doctors for a referral to a diabetes educator. Diabetes educators can also be found using this finder.
Donna Tomky is spreading the word through many sources to get the word of her expectations out, not only to the members, but also to patients. Her goal in this article is to emphasize education by AADE members to their patients. Now if she can minimize the CDE mandates put forth by so many of the AADE members, this will be a giant step forward in familiarizing patients with diabetes education. This education has been proven effective and is a tool for patients to become more knowledgeable about diabetes and be able to manage diabetes to avoid many of the complications of diabetes.
Diabetes is indeed a complex disease that requires daily self-management, blood glucose self-management, and the ability to formulate flexible lifestyle plans to fit the needs of the patient. It is not the place of the CDEs to be inflexible and intransigent in their teaching.
With this in mind, she lays out the seven key areas of diabetes self-management developed by the AADE called the AADE7 Self-Care Behaviors. They are:
“Healthy Eating - Learning to make healthy food choices by paying attention to nutritional content and portion sizes
Being Active - Recognizing the importance of physical activity and making a plan to start moving today
Monitoring - Learning to check, record, and understand blood glucose levels and other numbers important to diabetes self-care
Taking Medication - Remembering to take medications as prescribed and understanding how they affect the body and diabetes management
Problem Solving - Gaining skills to identify problems or obstacles to self-care behaviors and learning how to solve them
Reducing Risks - Understanding the potential complications associated with diabetes and taking steps to prevent developing them
Healthy Coping - Developing healthy ways of dealing with challenges and difficult situations related to diabetes”
Some CDEs will work with you to create a plan using these and implementing them into your daily life. Others unfortunately will mandate certain information and order you to implement them. To know what to do, you can investigate the seven health-care behaviors here and learn to use them on your own. This is can be very important when a CDE is not available or does not consider your goals for lifestyle changes. If you come across a CDE that listens and helps you with your goals and helps you modify them to manage diabetes more effectively, you have a great combination and work hard to keep this CDE.
For someone who is newly diagnosed with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, but not prediabetes, Medicare and most private insurance companies cover 10 hours of diabetes self-management training. After that annually, patients are entitled to two hours of diabetes self-management training. AADE recommends that patients ask their doctors for a referral to a diabetes educator. Diabetes educators can also be found using this finder.
October 10, 2011
We Need You!
Are you looking for a place to discuss diabetes and the related diabetes complications? Are you also looking for a place if you are outside the English speaking community and would like to increase you knowledge and usage of the English language?
If so, why not join MyDiaBlog.com (the site is no longer on the internet) and participate in the discussions. We have room for you. We do not allow automatic membership because we try to protect the site from those who would misuse it and spread misinformation. We also do not want advertising or spam messages. We try to prevent them from joining and if they do find a way in and then misuse our trust, they will be deleted.
We try to limit our discussions to the topics at hand and already part of the site, but if you do not see something that you would like to discuss, ask an active moderator to set it up for you. We may be able to direct you to something already established. Try to complete as much of the information as possible as this helps us determine who you are.
If you are unsure at the start, do not be afraid to look around and become acquainted with the site. Do not worry about your English, as we will ask questions if we do not understand. As far as diabetes is concerned, we have people that have most types of diabetes or they would not be on the site. We have been through the full range of problems and someone should be able to help you, or get help for you.
We are not doctors so we can only use our personal experiences and give you support and encouragement in a positive manner. We make suggestions and urge you to consult with your medical people if you have a problem that needs solving quickly.
Many of us are Americans or from other countries that speak the English language from around the world, so much of the advice will be from these countries, but we may have members from your country that can assist as well. Do not let the fact that Americans only have one system of measurements and the rest uses a different system. There are conversion charts and programs to help and all you need is to ask.
If you have questions, I can also be reached at the email address on my profile page by clicking on “View my complete profile”. I will do my best to answer questions by return email. On the site, we do have a few languages that the site can be translated into, but they are European languages.
We would like to have you (my readers) as an active member of MyDiablog, so please consider this.
If so, why not join MyDiaBlog.com (the site is no longer on the internet) and participate in the discussions. We have room for you. We do not allow automatic membership because we try to protect the site from those who would misuse it and spread misinformation. We also do not want advertising or spam messages. We try to prevent them from joining and if they do find a way in and then misuse our trust, they will be deleted.
We try to limit our discussions to the topics at hand and already part of the site, but if you do not see something that you would like to discuss, ask an active moderator to set it up for you. We may be able to direct you to something already established. Try to complete as much of the information as possible as this helps us determine who you are.
If you are unsure at the start, do not be afraid to look around and become acquainted with the site. Do not worry about your English, as we will ask questions if we do not understand. As far as diabetes is concerned, we have people that have most types of diabetes or they would not be on the site. We have been through the full range of problems and someone should be able to help you, or get help for you.
We are not doctors so we can only use our personal experiences and give you support and encouragement in a positive manner. We make suggestions and urge you to consult with your medical people if you have a problem that needs solving quickly.
Many of us are Americans or from other countries that speak the English language from around the world, so much of the advice will be from these countries, but we may have members from your country that can assist as well. Do not let the fact that Americans only have one system of measurements and the rest uses a different system. There are conversion charts and programs to help and all you need is to ask.
If you have questions, I can also be reached at the email address on my profile page by clicking on “View my complete profile”. I will do my best to answer questions by return email. On the site, we do have a few languages that the site can be translated into, but they are European languages.
We would like to have you (my readers) as an active member of MyDiablog, so please consider this.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)