"The state is promoting healthy behaviors and endorsing the
effectiveness of diabetes self-management education, or DSME, which
uses a curriculum approved by the American Diabetes Association,"
said Jennifer DiPasquale, a licensed, registered dietitian and
certified diabetes educator. "Group education works." Called the
U.S. Diabetes Conversation Map program, the class will be guided by
participants in an interactive setting. The program was developed by
Healthy Interactions Inc., a global leader in health education, in
collaboration with the American Diabetes Association.
The program has been taught at ALMH since 2009 by DiPasquale.
"It's always patient-centered, promoting what the group feels is
important," DiPasquale said. "This conversation-driven method leads
participants to get more involved in creating a plan to improve
their health, and it's driven by the belief that people learn by
being engaged -- hearing, seeing, exploring, discussing and doing."
The first of two four-hour class sessions will be on Oct. 9,
meeting from 2 to 4:15 p.m. in the Baldridge Education Room at ALMH.
The second session will also begin Oct. 9, meeting from 6 to 8:15
p.m. in the Baldridge Room. Because of the program's structure, a
limited number of participants can enroll for each session.
There are four major content areas in the program:
covers many of the basic
concepts one needs to know related to managing diabetes.
Diabetes and Healthy Eating
engages participants in a detailed discussion about the
connection between food and diabetes and the importance of
healthy eating to managing diabetes.
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Monitoring Your
Blood Glucose engages patients in a discussion about the
importance of monitoring blood glucose, managing high and low
blood glucose, and how to use the results from monitoring to
better manage diabetes.
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Continuing Your
Journey with Diabetes focuses on complex concepts related to
diabetes, including the natural course of diabetes, the medicine
options that exist, what insulin is and how it works, long-term
complications associated with diabetes, and the key ABC's --
A1C, blood pressure, cholesterol.
Participants must have a physician's order and fill out
registration and needs assessment forms. For more information or to
request the forms, contact DiPasquale by email (preferred) at
diabetes@almh.org or by
calling 217-605-5535. Forms can also be picked up at the ALMH Rehab
Services office between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
ALMH is a 25-bed critical-access hospital at 200 Stahlhut Drive
in Lincoln. For more information, visit
www.almh.org.
[Text from file received from
Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital]
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