According to key figures in the 9th edition of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Atlas 2019, 1 in 11 adults or about 463 million people aged 20-79 years have diabetes while 1 in 2 adults, or about 232 million, with diabetes are undiagnosed, and 1 in 5 people with diabetes or 136 million are above 65 years old.
The IDF estimates that 163 million people suffer from diabetes in the Western Pacific region, and will balloon to 212 million by year 2045. The Philippines, one of 39 countries and territories within the IDF Western Pacific (WP) region, has long been considered a hotspot when it comes to the number of people with diabetes. Of the country’s adult population of 63.265 million, about 6.3 percent, or almost 4 million adults, suffer from diabetes.
As the number of people with diabetes continues to rise across the world, the role of nurses and allied health care professionals has become increasingly important in managing the impact of diabetes on people. This is why the central theme of this year’s observance of World Diabetes Day is the “Nurse and Diabetes.”
Foundation of health care
Nurses are considered the foundation of health care and they account for more than half of all health care professionals around the world. Even when it comes to supporting people with diabetes, they remain on the frontlines.
“Nurses are one of the first health care professionals who attend to the needs of the patient, and are vital figures in diabetes management,” said Leyden Florido, president of the Philippine Association of Diabetes Educators (PADE), IDF—WPR Executive Board Member, and a leading Diabetes Nurse Educator in the Philippines.
When it comes to diabetes, Florido said nurses have to be holistic in their approach to make a difference in patients’ lives.
In a recent survey conducted among diabetes nurse educators from PADE and the Association of Diabetes Nurse Educators of the Philippines (ADNEP), it revealed the other important roles that nurses play in helping take care of patients with diabetes.
Educators
Since one of the best outcomes will come from the patient’s adherence to treatment and doctor’s advice, nurses are considered educators by providing education to people with diabetes, those at risk, as well as their family. Diabetes is a lifetime disease, and patients will tend to regularly and consistently follow prescribed treatment when they understand their condition.
Because a by-product of education is advocacy, nurses also act as advocates who spread awareness about diabetes not just to the patients they care for and their families, but to different communities as well. This may include diabetes clubs in hospitals and clinics, companies, communities, and schools.
Collaborators
They are also deemed collaborators because managing diabetes is a collective effort from all stakeholders and it is crucial that nurses collaborate with the entire diabetes care team. This includes doctors, diabetes educators, nutritionist-dietitians, and other allied health care professionals.
Nurses also serve as coordinators because as members of the diabetes care team, they also regularly coordinate with other stakeholders to promote positive health-seeking behavior, prevent the onset of diabetes, and delay complications of the disease.
Finally, nurses are not just about caring for a patient but they also play a key role in passing on the skills to other members of the allied health care profession. This is a more specialized role for diabetes nurse educators who are part of the diabetes education training program.
“Beyond providing care, as nurses in diabetes management, we also take an active role in the continuity of patient treatment,” said Florido. “As we become more prominent figures in the lives of people with diabetes, we can better help them keep their lifetime disease under control.”
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Thank you for recognizing our nurses