Managing Diabetes Proves Difficult Without an AmeriCorps Helping Hand!

In the United States, 29.1 million people have diabetes.  While there are two kinds of diabetes, the most common type of diabetes is type 2 diabetes.  In type 2 diabetes, the body is unable to use insulin properly.  There is unfortunately no cure for diabetes.  Diabetes is also associated with a wide range of complications and outcomes, including kidney disease, heart disease, stroke, amputation, and death.  However, it is possible to prevent or delay these complications with good self-care. 

With diabetes, good self-care involves striving to keep one’s blood glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol on target.  Taking care of diabetes includes making healthy food choices, exercising daily, taking medications as prescribed, and maintaining a healthy weight.  However, there are numerous challenges that a patient might experience to good self-care, including low health literacy, poor social support, low income, food insecurity, no health insurance, homelessness, and lack of time, transportation, safe exercise spaces, and healthy grocery stores.  Furthermore, even without challenging barriers, diabetes involves making new habits and changing behaviors.  Changing behaviors is hard for everyone!

As part of my responsibilities as the Diabetes Quality Improvement Coordinator at the UPMC Shadyside Family Health Center, I concentrate on developing initiatives to help patients improve their self-care.   We are trying to empower patients to be able to take control of and manage their disease in between appointments.  Patients also set self-management goals to live happier, healthier lives.  In order to increase self-management, I started two new projects at my host site.

First, I created a diabetes education menu for providers at my site.  Providers are able to “prescribe” certain diabetes topics to be covered with the patient during their sick-visit or check-up.  After their visit with their physician, I visit with the patient and cover the prescribed topics.   It has been a phenomenal way to increase patient education options and help patients learn more about their diabetes.  Delivering the education at the same time as their appointment reduces any additional barriers that a patient might encounter if they had to create another appointment, whether time taken to come to the visit, lack of transportation, or lack of money to pay for the co-pay.  I have had the wonderful opportunity to help patients learn more about important diabetes topics, including healthy eating, physical activity, diabetes complications, and annual preventive exams. 
In addition, I am creating a health coaching program for select diabetic patients at my site, especially uninsured patients.  Health coaching involves supporting and motivating individuals to cultivate positive health choices.  It uses motivational interviewing techniques to empower patients to reach their goals. Many insurance companies cover health coaching for their patients.  However, patients without health insurance, or with some plans, do not have this opportunity.  By starting this program at my site, I hope to be able to offer this service to patients that did not have it previously.  I  am eager to see how well this project works!

In addition to these projects, I have been working with patients on managing diabetes during the holidays.  On November 14, I held a Diabetes Awareness Day with Michelle O’Leary and Hayden Barns from the Greater Community Pittsburgh Food Bank and the Squirrel Hill Food Pantry, respectively.  I provided information on diabetes and provided a diabetic-friendly snack to over 100 patients.  The holiday season is full of delicious home-made food, but often the things that we love are not friendly to people with diabetes. At the Diabetes Awareness Day, I educated clients and discussed managing diabetes during the holidays and gave out diabetes holiday tips, diabetic-friendly Thanksgiving recipes, and other information about managing diabetes.  In addition to this event, our November diabetes group visit focused on managing diabetes during the holidays.  We talked about various aspects of managing diabetes and tried to brainstorm ways to combat common problems.  Managing diabetes during the holidays is a challenging and important topic, and my site has worked hard to empower our patients to do their best during the holiday season.

Catie presenting at the Diabetes Awareness Day event

Overall, my service at my site has been incredible!  My host site and mentors support me developing new projects and trying new things.  I am happy to have the opportunity to leave my mark at my host site, just like previous members did before me.