ALMH offers diabetic classes

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[February 25, 2014]  If you're diabetic and looking to lead a healthier lifestyle, Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital is offering a popular class that is covered by insurance. There are two sessions available, each with four, two-hour classes.

"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 DSME 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 class has been taught at ALMH since 2009 by DiPasquale.

The first session begins Wednesday, meeting from 6 to 8:15 p.m. in the Baldridge Education Room at ALMH, and will meet on Wednesday evenings until April 9. The second session will begin March 12, meeting from 2 to 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday afternoons until April 23.

"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."

There are four major content areas in the program:

  • "On the Road to Better Managing Your Diabetes" covers many of the basic concepts one needs to know about 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 in 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.

  • "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 ABCs: A1C, blood pressure and cholesterol.

Because of the program's structure, a limited number of participants can enroll for each session.

To participate, a specific physician's order for diabetes self-management education is required, and participants must fill out registration and needs assessment forms. To inquire or request the forms, contact DiPasquale by email (preferred) at diabetes@almh.org or call 217-605-5535.

[Text from file received from Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital]

ALMH is a 25-bed critical-access hospital at 200 Stahlhut Drive in Lincoln. For more information, visit www.almh.org.

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