New initiative puts insulin management in an app

The Endocrine Society, American Diabetes Association, American Association of Diabetes Educators and three other organizations recently launched the Accurate Insulin Decisions, or AID, program to give patients with diabetes additional tools, such as a smartphone app, to improve their glycemic control.

“Armed with these tools, millions of people who have diabetes will be positioned to play a more active role in managing their care,” Robert A. Gabbay, MD, PhD, a member of the AID Task Force and the chief medical officer and senior vice president of Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, said in a press release. “The AID program’s tools empower patients to learn more about effective strategies for managing diabetes and facilitate important treatment discussions between patients and their health care providers.”

The AID program includes questionnaires for patients and physicians to help them examine their lifestyle, goals and priorities and how that factors into their insulin options, according to the release.

After making those cooperative decisions, patients can use the app on their phone or the website to track their insulin dosing and adjust as needed.

“It can be overwhelming for people with diabetes to calculate insulin doses,” Carol Greenlee, MD, AID Task Force Chairwoman, said. “The AID tools simplify the process of determining whether and how much to adjust the dose so patients can maintain safe blood sugar levels.”

For more information: www.acurateinsulin.org

Disclosures: The AID program is a joint initiative of the Endocrine Society, American Diabetes Association, American Association of Diabetes Educators, American College of Physicians, American Osteopathic Association, American Pharmacists Association and Diabetes Nation. The program is supported by educational grants from Lilly USA, LLC; Novo Nordisk LLC; and Sanofi-Aventis US.