Diabetes Education Service Merits ADA Recognition

News

The Titus Regional Medical Center diabetes self-management education service in Mt Pleasant has been awarded continued Recognition from the American Diabetes Association.  The DSMES service was originally Recognized in 2003.  This service offers high-quality education services to their participants.

The ADA Education Recognition effort, begun in the fall of 1986, is a voluntary process which assures that approved education services have met the National Standards for Diabetes  Self-Management Education Services.  Services that achieve Recognition status have a staff of knowledgeable health professionals who can provide state-of-the-art information about diabetes management for participants.

Self-management education is an essential component of diabetes treatment.  One consequence of compliance with the National Standards is the greater consistency in the quality and quantity of education offered to people with diabetes.  The participant in an ADA Recognized service will be taught, as needed, self-care skills that will promote better management of his or her diabetes treatment regimen.  All approved education services develop individualized participant education plans that include any of the following topics as needed: diabetes disease process; nutritional management; physical activity; medications; monitoring; preventing, detecting, and treating acute complications; preventing, detecting, and treating chronic complications through risk reduction; goal setting and problem solving; psychological adjustment; and preconception care, management during pregnancy, and gestational management.

Assuring high-quality education for participants self-care is one of the primary goals of the ADA Education Recognition Program (ERP).  Through the support of the health care team and increased knowledge and awareness of diabetes, the person with diabetes can assume a major part of the responsibility for his/her diabetes management.  Unnecessary hospital admissions and some of the acute and chronic complications of diabetes may be prevented through self-management education.

“The process gives professional national standards by which to measure the quality of the services they provide”, commented Christina Graham, RD, LD, CDCES.  “And, of course, it helps consumers to identify these quality DSMES services.”

For more information, contact Christina Graham at 903-577-6099.