Improving The Care Of People With Diabetes

Main Category: Diabetes
Article Date: 12 Nov 2009 - 2:00 PST

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Apart from the diabetes specialist, the nurse is the most important person for people with diabetes, particularly if they have questions about nutrition, blood glucose monitoring, diabetic foot or exercise. Expert advice and psychological support both play an important role in the task of constantly motivating people with diabetes to manage their metabolic disorder.

Bayer HealthCare is very keen to support Nurses in Diabetes and to provide them with a forum for meeting experts, receiving continuing training and communicating with others in their profession. It is against this background that Bayer and the Federation of Nurses in Diabetes (FEND) issue a joint annual invitation to attend the Bayer HealthCare European Nursing Symposium in Leverkusen. The sixth symposium, which ran from November 4-7, 2009, was attended by 250 nurses from 21 countries. Communication was facilitated by simultaneous interpretation of the plenary presentations and workshops into five languages.

By focusing on the core areas of "self-care", "environment", "nutrition", "therapy" and "exercise", the event examined the personal, institutional and political goals that can impact upon both the prevention of diabetes and the reduction of associated complications once the condition has developed. Particular consideration was given to the ongoing relationship between patient and healthcare professional, with the latter being asked to question how best they can offer appropriate levels of advice, support and guidance so as to empower individuals to take over the decision-making role. The symposium focused on the key factors that affect the choices made and the question of ultimately whose responsibility these choices are.

European Bayer Award for Nurses in Diabetes

During the symposium the "European Bayer Award for Nurses in Diabetes" was awarded for an initiative that has improved the care of people with diabetes. This year the jury chaired by Anne-Marie Felton, president of FEND, honored Beverly McDermott, Phil Gardener and Yvonne Robinson from the Bradford and Airedale Community Health Service, Bradford, UK, for their "Bradford Erectile Dysfunction Diabetes Service (BEDDS) Experience: Diabetes and erectile dysfunction (ED) managed in a community-independent nurse-prescriber clinic".

ED is a common complication of diabetes but is rarely mentioned and discussed by patients and health care professionals alike. Between 30 to 60 percent of men with diabetes have this complication.

BEDDS was an initiative set up in May 2006 as a diabetes nurse specialist-led service in order to treat men with diabetes and ED. The service was planned to be a "one-stop service" where patients diagnosed with ED could be referred from their local diabetes team, assessed and treated within a local setting.

The BEDSS clinic team compromises two independent nurse prescribers, a psychosexual counselor and a male language support worker. The clinics are held weekly in a health centre close to the city centre. The team members assess, offer and prescribe treatment to men with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Over 200 men have been assessed and treated within this service, and data relating to effectiveness and uptake of pharmaceuticals and vacuum devices will be presented as well as data relating to no need for treatment or onward referral to endocrinologists in the context of low testosterone levels established as part of the assessment process.

BEDDS demonstrates that diabetes specialist nurses with additional training in the management of ED can effectively address the needs of men with diabetes who are experiencing this often distressing and poorly managed complication.

The leader of the winning team is invited to participate in the 2010 FEND Conference in Stockholm.

Bayer HealthCare

The Bayer Group is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, nutrition and high-tech materials. Bayer HealthCare, a subsidiary of Bayer AG, is one of the world's leading, innovative companies in the healthcare and medical products industry and is based in Leverkusen, Germany. The company combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Bayer Schering Pharma, Consumer Care and Medical Care divisions. Bayer HealthCare's aim is to discover and manufacture products that will improve human and animal health worldwide.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group or subgroup management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here.

Source: Bayer HealthCare

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