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JBSA News
NEWS | Jan. 17, 2017

Wing pioneers innovative diabetes education program

By Staff Sgt. Kevin Iinuma 59th Medical Wing Public Affairs

A 59th Medical Wing education initiative aims to ensure all Department of Defense patients with diabetes can learn how to manage their disease and lower their risk for complications.

Diabetes affects more than 130,000 Department of Defense beneficiaries, including 50,000 Airmen and family members worldwide.

“We are very excited about the potential for using the Military Interagency Satellite Training platform (MIST) in an innovative way to improve patients’ education and provide consistent training across the DoD,” said Dr. Tom Sauerwein, Director of the Diabetes Center of Excellence, or DCOE.

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) recommends all patients with diabetes receive Diabetes Self-Management Education (DSME), which saves money, reduces long-term complications, and is associated with overall glucose management. Consequently, the Air Force Medical Operations Agency tasked the DCOE with addressing and standardizing all aspects of diabetes care, including DSME.

The DCOE, part of the 59th Medical Operations Group, began piloting a satellite-based real-time interactive DSME program in 2016, providing up to 10 hours of ADA-recognized educational material directly to patients via the MIST platform, and an in-person class at the Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center. The program, a series of four 2.5-hour classes, delivers the components of diabetes education as defined by the ADA.

“We developed the current DSME via telehealth model to allow disease managers to provide ADA recognized DSME in their clinics,” said Dr. Jana Wardian, DCOE research director.

Many military treatment facilities do not have the resources to provide DSME to patients, Dr. Wardian said. The pilot study tested a telehealth model in the San Antonio area by coordinating with disease managers to provide ADA-recognized DSME to patients at the Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center and JBSA-Randolph clinics via the MIST.

Available in all military treatment facilities, the MIST is approved as a consistent means of delivering interactive DSME. Statistically, the education program rates high in satisfaction with both patients and providers. The pilot program proved successful, and now the DCOE is preparing to expand the DSME to reach more patients.

“We project adding four or five additional MTFs beginning January 2017.” The final phase, expanding to all DoD MTFs, will be determined when staffing issues are addressed,” said Nina Watson, Diabetes Educator for the DCOE Outreach program, and the driving force behind the DSME via telehealth initiative.

The DCOE telehealth team will train other MTF staff interested in participating in remote DSME, develop policies and tools to ensure consistent reporting of data, and evaluate cost effectiveness and patient outcomes.

“I enjoy (teaching patients) at other bases; it’s fun,” said Ellen Cobb, DSME coordinator for the ADA-recognized program at Wilford Hall. “The patients also seem to enjoy the classes and are excited about opportunities to join us in DSME programs from other clinics.”
  

For more information about the DSME via Telehealth program, call Watson at 210-292-0307. For more information about scheduling a DSME class at Wilford Hall, call Cobb at 210-292-2818.