Edhat Staff
Source: William Sansum Diabetes Center
The William Sansum Diabetes Center staff had a successful showcase at the American Diabetes Association’s 77th Scientific Sessions June 9-13th in San Diego, CA. WSDC’s Ocho Pasos a la Buena Salud (Eight Steps to Better Health) was selected to be showcased in a Moderated Poster Discussion. The presentation was led by WSDC Diabetes Educator Mary Conneely. It was part of the ADA tour entitled Community Strategies to Improve Care Delivery, on Saturday June 10th, 2017.
More than 15,000 leading physicians, scientists and health care professionals from around the world convene each year at the American Diabetes Association’s Scientific Sessions to unveil cutting-edge research, treatment recommendations and advances toward a cure for diabetes.
“It was a great experience for me personally and it was just overwhelming with how much information there was at the conference,” says Conneely who attended the conference for the first time this year.
During the conference Conneely experienced an impressive example of just how far reaching WSDC’s Ocho Pasos education is across the globe. Conneely, who is from Bolivia, met two conference attendees also from Bolivia. When Conneely told them about the WSDC’s presentation the attendees excitedly said they had already downloaded WSDC’s Ocho Pasos program, even before they met Conneely that day.
“More than anything it was so amazing to show other people what we are doing at William Sansum Diabetes Center and what works to better the lives of the community,” Says Conneely.
The moderated poster presentation detailed how Ocho Pasos is a culturally-relevant diabetes education program designed for low-income, monolingual Latino participants with or at risk for type 2 diabetes. The 8 weekly sessions focus on nutrition, treatment, monitoring, exercise and stress management. The astounding results of Ocho Pasos were on display, highlighting the dramatic A1C reduction by taking the class.
William Sansum Diabetes Center Executive Director, Ellen Goodstein says, “It is incredibly empowering, energizing and awe inspiring to be around the nearly 15,000 talented and dedicated physicians, researchers, engineers, educators and others all making incredible progress in the fight against this dreadful disease. To hear the progress being made in so many areas of diabetes research gave me genuine hope for the future. We will beat this disease!”
Dr. David Kerr says, “The ADA showcases the best and the brightest for Diabetes research and innovation and this year the Center was especially prominent because of the cutting edge work we are involved with right now.”
Diabetes affects nearly 30 million children and adults in the United States and contributes to the deaths of more than 230,000 Americans each year. The American Diabetes Association estimates that the total cost of diagnosed diabetes in the U.S. is more than $177 billion, and published studies suggest that when additional costs for gestational diabetes, prediabetes and undiagnosed diabetes are included, the total diabetes-related costs in the U.S. exceeds $322 billion annually.
William Sansum Diabetes Center attendees included Ellen Goodstein, Mary Conneely, Ceara Axelrod, Wendy Bevier, Jenifer Swartzentruber, Dr. David Kerr, Dr. Jordan Pinsker, Laura Lindsey and Mei Mei Church.
