DIABETES EDUCATION
If you have diabetes, you know how challenging it can be to manage. You’re expected to eat a healthy and balanced diet, get plenty of physical activity, monitor your blood glucose throughout the day, take your medications as prescribed, and do all of this to reduce your risk for complications. At times it might seem overwhelming, but you can thrive with diabetes, and a diabetes care and education specialist can help.
As a member of your diabetes care team, a diabetes care and education specialist works with you to develop a management plan that fits your lifestyle, beliefs and culture. They’ll help you understand how to use devices like meters, insulin pens, pumps and continuous glucose monitoring devices; and use the information from these devices and your lifestyle to identify patterns and opportunities for improvement. You’ll work together to find solutions to address your most pressing challenges.
Diabetes education provided by a diabetes care and education specialist can help people with all types of diabetes better manage their blood glucose, develop coping skills to address the daily challenges of the disease, reduce the risks for complications, decrease costs by reducing or eliminating the need for medications and emergency room visits, and help find and access cost-savings programs.
Medicare and most health insurance plans cover diabetes education when it is offered through an accredited diabetes education program, which has met vigorous criteria set by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Robert C. Byrd Clinic is proud to now offer an accredited program. Ask your primary care provider about working with a diabetes care and education specialist.
