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Revised standards for diabetes support emphasize self-management
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PHILADELPHIA—Here at the American Association of Diabetes Educators Annual Meeting and Exhibition, Leslie E. Kolb, RN, BSN, MBA, director of the Diabetes Education Accreditation Program, explained to educators how they can apply the 2012 Revised National Standards for Diabetes Support to every day practices.
“There is an increased focus on prediabetes in the revised standards, and I think that is really key moving forward,” Kolb said.
According to Kolb, the revised standards emphasize ongoing support and self-management, while providing more choices for health care professionals. For example, there is an improvement in standard 5 that identifies how community health workers can assist the diabetes educator as an instructor.
“If you’re not an RN, RD or pharmacist and you hold a CDE or BC-ADM, you can now be a solo practitioner in a diabetes education program,” Kolb said. “It’s a little clearer now that a community health worker could teach a piece of your program without you in the room.”
Kolb said that community health workers can be a good resource because they are familiar with the needs of the local culture.
Further, improvements in support are evident throughout all 10 standards. Prior to the revised standards, support was specific to standard 8. Now, ongoing support is encouraged for all diabetes management education programs, she said. For this reason, standard 8 now asks that programs develop a follow-up plan for support within the community and beyond.
“For your patients to be successful, goals need to be specific, measureable, attainable, realistic and timely,” Kolb said. – by Samantha Costa
For more information:
Kolb LE. #T09. Presented at: American Association for Diabetes Educators Annual Meeting and Exhibition; August 7-10; Philadelphia.
Disclosure: Kolb reports no relevant financial disclosures.