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 “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.
DSME has been taught at ALMH since 2009 by DiPasquale. Participants
can choose an afternoon session from 2pm-4:10pm or an evening
session from 6pm to 8:10pm. The sessions will be held on the
following Wednesdays: February 11, February 25, March 11, and March
25.
 “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 as it relates 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.
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). Because of the program’s structure, a limited
number of participants can enroll for each session. To participate,
a specific Diabetes Self Management Education Physician’s Order is
required and you must fill out DSME Registration and Needs
Assessment forms. Links for all three can be found on
www.ALMH.org by clicking on
“Medical Services” on the home page, then “Clinical
Nutrition Services”, then “More Information for Diabetes Self
Management Education”.
To inquire or request the forms, contact DiPasquale by email
(preferred) at diabetes
@almh.org or by calling
217-605-5535.
ALMH is a 25-bed critical access hospital located at 200 Stahlhut
Drive in Lincoln.
[Angela Stoltzenburg, Abraham Lincoln
Memorial Hospital]
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