About Patient Education
|
The Principles of
Patient Diabetes Education
at Joslin Clinic
- The person with diabetes is the center of her/his healthcare team.
- People with diabetes live multifaceted lives with competing demands that influence their diabetes self-care.
- People living with diabetes make complex self-care decisions everyday.
- Family and other support systems strongly influence diabetes self-care.
- People with diabetes learn ideas and concepts that they perceive as important.
- Learning occurs when the individuals are engaged.
- Learning is a process that requires reinforcement and flexibility.
|
Patient education is an integral part of JoslinCareTM — the model of diabetes care at the Joslin Clinic.
JoslinCare provides an individualized pathway of care based on your particular needs with a team of diabetes specialists, both physicians and educators. It is about empowering you to self-manage the day-to-day care of your diabetes.
Joslin is dedicated to continually improving diabetes education through the Center for Innovation in Diabetes Education (CIDE), which develops cutting-edge programs, materials and methods to help patients achieve successful, long-term diabetes management and self-care. The CIDE also focuses on research and evaluation of new educational programs as well as providing education programs for educators and other Joslin staff.
Through this unique patient-centered approach, Joslin is able to offer a wide variety of group education programs to help patients get on and stay on the pathway to health.
There are beginner classes, advanced classes, refresher classes and programs for those who want to use the insulin pump. These classes are usually taken in addition to one-on-one education with diabetes nurse educators, dietitians and exercise physiologists. For more information about education programs offered at Joslin Clinic, please contact Jessica Doughty at 617-264-2780.
Insurance companies often cover the cost of most of these programs.
Joslin Certified Diabetes Educators
Our expertly trained, nationally certified educators and certification-eligible clinicians include diabetes nurse educators, dietitians and exercise physiologists. You can see these specialists one-on-one, or get the information and motivation you need through a variety of programs and classes. They work together as a team to provide coordinated sequenced learning activities.
Diabetes Nurse Educators
Diabetes nurse educators provide excellent patient care, perform health and learning assessments, develop and update your individualized self-management education plan.
They will teach you management skills, including:
- blood glucose monitoring and how to handle sick days
- how to treat your diabetes when traveling across time zones
- how to recognize and treat low or high blood glucose
- how to begin an intensive diabetes program or use an insulin pump and other new technologies
Registered Dietitians Registered dietitians are outstanding leaders in the field of nutrition and diabetes care. They are certified diabetes educators who offer individual counseling and group education classes that promote healthful food behaviors and skills at a basic and advanced level. Nutrition educators effectively address the challenges of weight control, modify food choices based on your medical history, and keep you up to date on the latest diabetes and nutrition information based on the best available research.
Exercise Physiologists
Physical activity is a key component of diabetes care and staying active is a lifelong process. Joslin Clinic is one of the few institutions that include exercise physiology staff as members of the diabetes team. Exercise physiologists are trained to help you develop exercise programs that can make you healthier. They can help you design a plan to help meet your weight goals, fitness needs and improve your health. When blood glucose levels are a problem, they can help you balance food and diabetes medication to keep diabetes from interfering with your physical activity plans. With an effective exercise program, you can feel better physically and manage the stress of dealing with diabetes more effectively.
|
