| Diabetes Education Class Addresses Issues from an Internist's Point of View Tri-City Voice, January 30, 2008
Diabetes from the Doctor’s
Perspective
Many
different medical specialists may play a
role in providing care for patients who
have diabetes - from podiatrists to
ophthalmologists - but often it is the
internal medicine specialist, called an
"internist,” who treats diabetes from a
global perspective.
Not to be
confused with medical interns,
internists are physicians who have
completed their medical schooling, as
well as at least three years of
postgraduate training dedicated to
learning how to prevent, diagnose, and
treat diseases that affect adults.
Doctors in
this specialty are often considered the
detectives of the medical community,
responsible for sifting through medical
clues to better understand and treat
unusual presentations of both common and
infrequently occurring diseases.
Another
important role of the internist is to
treat patients with chronic medical
conditions that don’t have a "cure,” but
can be managed through doctors’ care and
patient diligence. Conditions such as
this may include hypertension, hyperlipidemia, degenerative arthritis,
congestive heart failure, chronic
pulmonary disease, renal disease,
cerebrovascular disease and
degenerative, rheumatoid arthritis and
diabetes mellitus.
An
internist’s perspective
Members of the community
who have diabetes and their family
members will have the opportunity to
hear from Dr. Vanessa Wilson, a
Washington Hospital Medical Staff
internist, on Thursday, February 7
during an upcoming Diabetes Matters
presentation titled: Caring for
Diabetes: An Internist’s Perspective.
Dr. Wilson
will talk in depth about caring for
diabetes from her perspective as a
medical internist.
"I plan to
discuss some of the criteria involved in
diagnosing diabetes and I’ll talk about
initial treatment options and medication
options for diabetes patients,” says
Wilson. "People with diabetes need to be
informed ahead of time about any
complications associated with
medications and I will describe the
different classes of diabetes
medications in great detail at the
upcoming presentation.”
Many
different components come into play when
looking at diabetes care. Unlike other
diseases, in which patients may play a
relatively minor role in their
treatment, diabetes care requires active
participation on the part of both
patient and caregiver. Very often,
patients with diabetes will work closely
with their internist, who may serve as
gatekeeper and primary care provider.
"As an
internist, my goal is to anticipate the
possible complications of diabetes such
as blindness, stroke or heart attack
before they occur,” says Wilson. "My
goal is to educate people about the risk
factors associated with diabetes and
help steer patients toward a treatment
plan that best fits their individual
needs.”
Different
areas of care and management that must
be identified and addressed - sometimes
internists may work with other medical
specialists in these areas - include:
- Controlling blood pressure
- Foot examinations
- Eye examinations
- Glycemic control
- Controlling cholesterol
levels
- Renal evaluation
- Prevention and treatment
of nerve damage
- Nutrition and exercise
- Weight management
- Quitting smoking
Internists
may be the gatekeepers for care when it
comes to diabetes care, but daily
self-management by patients - including
close blood sugar monitoring and
attention to diet and exercise - is an
essential element to managing a disease
that cannot be cured. An important part
of that self-management is gaining the
knowledge and tools, like those offered
through the upcoming Diabetes Matters
presentation, to better manage the
disease.
Diabetes Services for the community
Washington Hospital’s
Outpatient Diabetes Program offers a
wealth of resources and services for
members of the community, including
Diabetes Matters, a free, monthly
diabetes education class with expert
speakers (for the first hour), and group
discussion (for the last hour). No
registration is required for the
Diabetes Matters class or group
discussion.
In 2007,
Washington
Hospital’s Outpatient Diabetes Program
received the prestigious American
Diabetes Association Education
Recognition Certificate for a quality
diabetes self-management education
program. The association’s Education
Recognition Certificate assures that
educational programs meet the national
standards for quality diabetes
self-management education programs.
Washington
Hospital’s Outpatient Diabetes Program
is located at 1860 Mowry Avenue., Suite
200. To learn more about other services
and programs available through the
Outpatient Diabetes Program, call (510)
745-6556 or visit
www.whhs.com,
click on "Services & Programs” and
select "Diabetes Services” from the
drop-down menu.
What:
Diabetes Matters Presentation
Topic:
Caring for Diabetes: An Internist’s
Perspective
When:
Thursday, Feb. 7, 7 to 9 p.m.
Where:
Conrad E. Anderson, M.D. Auditorium
(Washington West, 2500 Mowry)
Call:
(510) 745-6556 for more information |
